


Ungritty Reboot

by amythis



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-23
Updated: 2019-08-27
Packaged: 2020-01-24 12:39:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 33
Words: 49,231
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18571684
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amythis/pseuds/amythis
Summary: When Jason Blossom isn't killed, the small town of Riverdale is changed forever.  Aspiring writer Jughead narrates his shocking but gradual discovery of the hidden light side of life.





	1. The Getaway

**Author's Note:**

> This uncrackfic is inspired by the eighteen episodes I watched and however many I spoiled myself on.

It was the summer that everything changed; it was the summer that changed everything. More specifically, it was July 4th weekend. My best friend, Archie Andrews, and I went on a road trip and came back to chaos.* Well, what passes for chaos in Riverdale. However, being the film noir fan I am, I've always suspected that there is a dark underbelly to my peppy hometown.

When the return bus dropped us off on Archie's block, he offered, "My dad can take you to the trailer park."

"Thanks, Man, but after all that time on buses, I think I'll walk."

"Next summer I'll have my license, and a car. I promise."

"Great. Maybe next year we can get away further than Greendale."

Bus service in our sleepy little county isn't great on holiday weekends. We made it only to the next town, on the other side of Sweetwater River. Little did we know of the drama surrounding the river that weekend, but we would shortly find out.

Archie chuckled. "Hey, at least it was good male bonding."

I'd talked about movies and food. He'd talked about sports and girls. I'd thought about telling him my secrets but I'm sort of a loner who's used to dealing with my own crap.

"Totally," I said with post-modern irony, where on another level I meant it, because Archie is like a brother to me, where we don't communicate very well but we've got each other's back.

"Oh em gee, you guys are back!" exclaimed our other best friend as she ran up to us, ponytail and chest bouncing.

I felt like a pig for noticing but it did confirm my recent theory about my non-asexuality. I glanced at Archie and confirmed another theory, that Betty was his exception as much as mine, in his case to rampant heterosexuality.

Then Betty Cooper caught us in one of her attack hugs worthy of Knives Chau in _Scott Pilgrim vs. the World._ I found I no longer found it annoying and boundary-crossing. Or it was now a boundary I wanted to cross, but I wasn't ready to confess to my unrequited crush, at least not until she confessed to hers.

Archie chuckled. "It's only been a couple days."

She burst into tears. I slipped out of our group hug, as Archie let her cry on one of his broad shoulders. (Yes, I noticed those, too, especially in our shared room at the Greendale Motor Lodge. My non-asexuality isn't rigidly het.)

"Jason died and Polly is missing!" Betty sobbed.

"Jason Blossom and your sister Polly?" Archie asked expositionally.

"Yes, they both disappeared on July 4th."

"Do you think they're connected? Like Polly killed Jason and then fled justice?" I speculated.

"Jughead!" Archie was aghast. "You're talking about Betty's sister!"

Betty let go of Archie and took a handkerchief out of her halter top, briefly making me wonder if Betty Cooper stuffs, but I decided she doesn't because she wouldn't have revealed that in front of Archie. She dried her eyes and said, "Yes, I think there is a connection, but, no, she couldn't have killed Jason." I expected her to say that Polly would never do something so horrible, or at least that Polly had an alibi. Instead she explained, "Jason's death was from accidental drowning."

"According to whom?" I queried. "Were there any witnesses?"

"Yes, his twin sister Cheryl. They snuck out for an early morning row, although their parents had always forbidden it because Sweetwater River has hidden depths. The boat overturned and Cheryl swam to shore, but Jason didn't make it."

"That sounds pretty fishy," I scoffed. "And speaking of fishy, what did they find when they dragged the lake for Jason's body?"

"They haven't yet," she said. "Sheriff Keller, Kevin's father, said they couldn't get anyone over the holiday weekend. But they're going to today. Do you guys want to go with me? I want to write it up for the _Blue & Gold's_ summer spectacular online edition."

"Elizabeth Cooper, you're not going anywhere with that Andrews boy and that beanie-wearing weirdo!"

Betty rolled her eyes as her uptight mother stormed out of their house and onto the sidewalk. "I'll sneak out and meet you guys later," Betty mouthed.

"What?" asked Archie, who can't lip-read.

I gestured he should follow me. And I led him to the river's edge.

  
  


*Am I telling you that Archie Andrews is my best friend or is this three people, linked by an Oxford comma? Let me put it this way. Sometimes it looks like there are four people in a booth at Pop's Chock'lit Shoppe, but there are really only three.


	2. The Outsiders

Betty's mother can read lips and she prevented Betty from sneaking out to see me or Archie for the next couple months. We texted a little, but Betty said she wanted to talk to me in person about Jason and Polly. Nothing and no one was found when the river was dragged, so Jason's secret remained hidden in the depths of Sweetwater. As for Polly, she had vanished into thin air.

I had to wait until school started, after a Labor Day Weekend that would turn out in retrospect to be more eventful than any of us knew at the time. For that was the weekend that Veronica Lodge arrived in our little town, a town she would forever change.

It was our first morning of sophomore year and Betty eagerly invited me and Archie to discuss things over lunch. I hadn't seen much of him either that summer, not counting our road trip, since he worked at his dad's construction company.

"Good idea," he said. "I've got something I want to share with you two."

"About Jason Blossom?" I asked.

"No," he said as if he couldn't believe I still cared about that mystery.

Before he could explain, Miss Grundy, our elderly homeroom teacher, shushed us, and then Mr. Weatherbee, our elderly principal, escorted a mysterious young woman into the room. She had long, shiny black hair, which she revealed when she pushed down the hood of her black cape.

"This is Veronica Lodge, a transfer student from New York City," the Bee explained. "Let's all make her feel welcome at Riverdale High."

From where I was sitting, I could see that Archie would be very happy to be a one-man welcome committee. And I could see that poor Betty saw that, too.

"You guys," Kevin whispered excitedly, "do you know who that is?"

"Yeah," I whispered flatly, "Veronica Lodge, a transfer student from New York City."

"No," he hissed impatiently, "she's the daughter of Hiram Lodge, the imprisoned millionaire!"

I wanted to ask if Mr. Lodge's crime was violent and if he might have anything to do with the murder of Jason Blossom, but Miss Grundy directed Veronica to the seat behind Betty. Veronica sashayed down the aisle, Archie watching in fascination, Betty in jealousy, Kevin in admiration of the new girl's style.

Veronica sat gracefully down on the wooden chair and whispered, "Your ponytail is so adorably retro!"

Betty blushed and whispered, "Thank you."

If Cheryl Blossom had said it, we would've known it was meant cattily, but it was too soon to get an accurate reading on Veronica Lodge. However, we would learn more about her, and others, in a few hours, because by the end of homeroom she invited herself to join us at lunch on the outside benches.

I was wary about introducing the subject of Jason Blossom in front of an outsider, although when I met my friends, Veronica and Kevin were happily discussing fashion like they'd known each other for years.

"...It was very _Breakfast at Tiffany's_ ," she was saying. "Jughead, you're a film buff. You know what I mean."

"Uh, right," I said, thrown by her knowing that about me.

"Anyway, now that the inner circle is complete, you can go ahead, Archikins."

How had she managed to give Archie a pet name and take control of him and the lunch so easily?

He looked self-conscious as he opened his laptop and said, "It's rough." Then he played us a song, about the loss of innocence and the redemption of love, that I thought was a new indie release until I recognized the singer as Archie himself.

We all stared in silence until Cheryl passed by with her minions and remarked, "I thought emo-alt went out in the '90s."

"Ignore her, Archikins. She hasn't yet learned that rich and bitch are rhymes, not Fate."

"It really was a nice song," Betty said.

"Just a little depressing," I said, making the girls glare at me.

"When did you start making music, Archie?" Kevin asked.

"This summer when I was working with my dad. My hands were busy but my mind wandered."

"Sounds like my last date," Kevin said.

"Anyway, I still have a lot to learn about music. Oh, there's Valerie Brown! Talk to you guys later." Archie scooped up his laptop and his lunch bag and ran after a girl on the other side of the lawn.

"Don't worry, Betty," Kevin said, seeing the look of disappointment on her face. "It's just because she's a Pussycat."

"A what now?" Veronica asked, apparently not up on all the Riverdale High social scene after all, although she'd been there four hours by then.

Betty blushed as she said the p-word and explained that the Pussycats were the most popular local band. Josie was the leader but Valerie was the lyricist.

"So," Kevin said, "even though Archie is chasing a girl, it's probably more in pursuit of music."

"Oh, wait, Betty," Veronica said, "do you capital L-like Archie?"

"She capital L-loves him."

"Kevin!"

"If I'd known, I never would've been so flirtatious. You're my best friend here, B, and sisterhood is important. So does Archie know how you feel?"

"She's been pining for years, but it's even worse now that he got hot over the summer. They're best friends. Well, we're all best friends, except me and Jughead."

"We're best friends of best friends," I added helpfully.

"Yeah, so Betty doesn't want to ruin their friendship, the one with Archie, by telling him."

"We need to go out this weekend, all of us. And then Betty can confess to Archie with our support. I know, let's go clubbing!"

"Clubbing?!" I stared at Veronica. "OK, first of all, with the exception of my friends, I'm anti-social."

"Obvs."

"And secondly, we're all fifteen. And lastly, there is no nightclub, unless you count the karaoke bar out on the highway, for miles around."

"It's true," Kevin sighed. "You basically have to take the train to the City to find a place that doesn't card."

"So how do you meet anyone? I mean you, Kev. Jughead is anti-social and Betty is hung up on Archie. Do you use GrindEm or what?"

"No, people can lie about themselves too easily unless you meet them in person."

"They can still lie about themselves," I observed.

"Yeah, but in person you can see what they actually look like and how old they are. It is tough for me, since I'm the only out gay guy in this school."

"So is it just closeted hook-ups?"

"Yeah, in fact." He lowered his voice, since this was more private than Betty's crush. "Let's just say that this morning I got propositioned in the restroom by someone named after an animal but hung like another animal."

"Doesn't Moose Mason have a girlfriend?" Veronica asked.

"That's why it's on the down-low." Kevin shrugged. "Anyway, we have a karaoke date on Saturday."

"OK, B, let's you, me, Archie, and whatever arm-candy I can line up, maybe Reggie Mantle—"

"Reggie Mantle is a douchebag," I pointed out.

"Of course, but he's a manageable douchebag. Anyway, the four of us will go out, not as a double date, but just casual socializing. Then I'll pull Reggie aside and you'll have a chance to talk to Archie. Now where can we go?"

"Um, there's Pop's Chock'lit Shoppe."

"Like Godiva?"

"No, like a malt shop."

Seeing the puzzled look on Veronica's zit-free, olive-skinned face, I said, "They sell milkshakes, French fries, and hamburgers."

"Oh, like Johnny Rockets."

"Yeah," Kevin said, "only it's not retro, just old."

I could see Veronica thinking _Like all of Riverdale_ and biting the remark back, as if in a struggle with her own bitchiness. She wasn't wrong though. Riverdale was old— almost 75 years!— which was one of the things I loved about it.

Then I found myself saying, "Why don't you leave Reggie out of it and the three of you can go to the drive-in where I work?"

"Well, for one thing, as you pointed out, we're fifteen and none of us can drive."

I was going to explain that they could walk or bus over and then watch movies from my projection booth, but Cheryl had returned, minionless.

"I have a license."

"Aren't you a sophomore, too?" Veronica asked, rather than telling Cheryl to stop eavesdropping.

"She was left back in sixth grade," I shared.

"I was a very sensitive child," Cheryl said defensively. "Anyway, if you losers need a car, I can take you."

I expected Veronica to tell her off. Not only was Cheryl rude and pushy, but her presence couldn't possibly advance Veronica's matchmaking scheme. I figured if the four of us gathered in the projection booth, then Veronica and I could make a run to the snack bar long enough for Betty to confess to Archie.

I was going to support the matchmaking just to have this settled. Maybe Archie would return Betty's feelings once he knew about them. Or maybe he wouldn't, and I would have to decide whether or not to keep my own feelings for Betty to myself. Maybe it was time to find out. Cheryl taking Archie, Betty, and Veronica to the drive-in would only complicate things, especially if she had schemes of her own.

But Veronica smiled and said, "That's really sweet of you, Cheryl, thanks."

Cheryl looked taken aback, as if she expected an argument. "Whatever. Text me with the deets. Hashtag au revoir."

The five-minute warning bell rang then, meaning lunch was almost over and we'd have to get to class soon. I hadn't found out anything else about Jason Blossom, except that his twin sister wanted to hang out with my friends. What was she up to and did it have anything to do with his death?

Lunch had given me much food for thought, but not as much as my after-school snack would.


	3. Diner

After school, I got fries at Pop's, to tide me over until I could raid the snack bar. I brought along my laptop, for the book I'm working on. I thought of Archie's laptop and his new love of music that I hadn't even suspected. What else didn't I know about my best friend?

"Hi, Juggy."

I looked up in surprise at Betty nicknaming my nickname. Then I frowned, seeing she was with Veronica.

"Hey, Jones, I hope you don't mind me tagging along, but I got curious."

Why was she asking permission, when she hadn't before? And why did she act as if Betty and I had planned to meet?

"Curious about Pop's?"

"Among other things." She sat across from me and then Betty hesitated and then sat next to her.

Pop came over and took their orders— burgers, fries, and shakes, it's a pretty limited menu— and Veronica waited until he brought their food and went back to the counter before she said, "Let's talk about the Blossoms."

I was annoyed, even though I had been wanting to talk about them all day. But I wanted to talk about them with Betty, and maybe Archie.

"They're the richest family in Riverdale, so your decision to make 'B' your BFF was premature."

Betty looked shocked but Veronica was unfazed. "No, Betty and I are destined to be besties. But what's Cheryl's deal? Has she always been a mean girl or just since her brother drowned?"

Betty and I looked at each other, wondering how much she knew, how much we could tell.

Betty answered, "Cheryl has always had a hard time relating to people, although she's popular in her own way."

Veronica nodded. "Popular but not liked," she murmured.

"Yes. Jason made friends easily, even before he was the star of the football team."

"Could Cheryl have drowned him out of envy?" Veronica asked in the same casual way she'd asked if I could pass her the ketchup.

Betty looked startled again, so I answered, "That's one possibility. I've had two months to think about this." I opened up my laptop again.

"You're not going to play us a song, are you?" Veronica teased.

"Maybe later. This is my list. All we know for sure is, one, Jason Blossom is missing, two, his sister says that he drowned, and three, his body never turned up. So possibility number one is he drowned by his sister's hand and she weighted his body down so he'd sink to the bottom of the river."

"Hm, I just can't see Cheryl committing a murder like that," Veronica said. "Too complicated and messy."

"Agreed. And I don't think she'd have told everyone he drowned accidentally when she was in the boat," I said, making a quick note in my Word doc.

Betty spoke up again, "I don't think Cheryl would kill her brother. They were very close and she misses him so much."

"What if she didn't plan to kill him and it was more of an impulse?" Veronica wondered. "And maybe she convinced herself it was an accident."

"Then where's the body?" I asked.

"Maybe there is no body," Betty said, surprising us both.

Then I remembered that her sister had disappeared without a trace. "You still haven't heard anything about Polly, have you?"

"Who's Polly?"

I was startled that Veronica didn't know something so basic about someone she claimed to be best friends with, but it was only about eight hours since they met.

"She's my older sister. She disappeared the same weekend as Jason, but it wasn't like with him. There was no explanation, no last sighting."

"No body," I whispered.

"Oh, Betty, I'm so sorry!" Veronica gave her a hug and I felt sort of jealous that I couldn't offer Betty the same physical comfort because of who I was and how I secretly felt about her.

I expected Betty to break down and cry, but she eagerly said from inside Veronica's arms, "I got a postcard this weekend!"

"A postcard? From Polly?" I asked, wondering why Polly didn't just call or text.

"Yeah, on Saturday."

Veronica let go and looked at Betty. "What did it say?"

" 'Don't worry, Betty, we'll be fine.' "

"We? Polly and who?" Veronica asked.

"I'm not sure. She could mean the Coopers, since our family has had some drama."

I managed not to scoff out loud. Betty's mom was a bit strict, but Betty knew little of what my family life was like. I glanced over at Veronica and she also seemed to be thinking something about Betty having the perfect family, although how much could Veronica know at that point, especially if she'd just found out Betty had a sister?

Betty didn't seem to notice, because after a pause she continued, "Or she could've meant me and her. If she ran away, which I think she must've rather than being abducted, then she'd know Mom would get stricter with me."

I thought of how Betty had been grounded for two months for just talking to and hugging two childhood friends. OK, maybe her mother was more than a bit strict. "Hey, what's Mommie Dearest going to say when she finds out you're hanging out with the beanie-wearing weirdo again?"

"I told her I had an after-school meeting for _The Blue and Gold_." Betty's parents published the local newspaper, so her mom definitely supported Betty being on the school newspaper.

"Tsk tsk, Betty Cooper fibbing to her mother," I teased.

"It doesn't have to be a lie. Would you like to join the paper?"

"Betty, you know I'm not a joiner."

"For God's sake, Jones, it's not like she's asking you to be on the homecoming planning committee! It'll mostly be the two of you brainstorming and even you can handle that level of human interaction."

I couldn't say that what I most feared and desired was time alone with Betty, whether discussing strange disappearances or what was really in the cafeteria's mystery meat. (Or, to be macabre, whether the two topics were related.)

"And you're a really good writer, Juggy."

I wanted to ask her about the nickname, but not in front of Veronica. "Can I write about Jason and maybe Polly?"

"Of course."

I smiled a little. On the surface, Betty seemed quiet, even passive, but she had an inner strength I'd always admired. I went back to my Word doc, partly to hide my smile. "Where was the postcard mailed from?"

"Well, the postmark says New York City."

I looked up again. "New York? Is that where she ran away to?"

"I guess. Or at least she stayed there recently."

"Or she had someone mail the card from there," Veronica suggested.

"If she even wrote it," I said.

"It was Polly's handwriting. But she could've handed it off to someone, maybe Jason."

"So you do you think they teamed up on this?" Veronica asked before I could.

"Maybe. I mean, them disappearing on the same weekend is suspicious."

"So Jason is the other part of her 'we'?"

Betty nodded. "Polly was very shy but maybe they were secretly friends, or more."

"Oo, what if they eloped?" Veronica squealed.

"To the City?" I scoffed.

"Why not?"

"They're both sixteen and the age of consent in this state, no matter what town or city, is eighteen, unless with parent permission, which they obviously didn't have."

"And how do you know so much about this topic?"

"I read a lot," I said.

"They might've run off together and not got married," Betty said blushing.

"Even more romantic!"

"But why run off?" I asked. "Why not just date? I mean, Betty's mom is strict but Jason is rich. That should count for something."

Betty shook her head. "My dad has never liked the Blossoms for some reason. If Polly was even friends with Jason, she'd have to hide it."

"Your parents don't know about the postcard, do they?" I asked Betty.

"I know I should tell them. I should turn it over to Sheriff Keller as evidence, but I feel like I need to protect Polly just in case. At least until I find out what her situation is."

"Does Cheryl know about any of this?" Veronica asked.

"Well, she must be in on Jason's disappearance if they faked his drowning together. But he may not have told her about Polly, if there is a connection, which we don't know of course."

I sighed. "I've got to get to work. Betty, can we meet at the _Blue and Gold_ office during lunch tomorrow?"

She smiled. "Of course. Thanks, Juggy."

"Hey, you know my weakness. Um, investigation."

Veronica smiled knowingly. If she'd picked up on my crush already, how would that fit into her matchmaking-Betty-and-Archie scheme? Maybe she wasn't going to give up on Archie so easily and she'd use me to get Betty out of the competition. But then how did Cheryl as chauffeur fit in? I'd have to watch my step around the daughter of a millionaire criminal, whatever his crimes were.


	4. Twilight Zone

"Hey, Midge, he's got you doing the Tuesday shift?"

She sighed. "Yeah, Ethel is sick, so of course I had to fill in, even if it meant bailing on Moose."

I thought of Moose's weekend karaoke plans with Kevin, but of course I couldn't say anything about that, so instead I teased, "The curse of being the boss's daughter."

"Yeah, but at least I don't have to deal with it for much longer."

"You're quitting the snack bar?"

"Didn't my dad tell you?"

"Tell me what?" I suddenly had a bad feeling about this.

"He's shutting down the drive-in." When I stared at her, speechless, she continued, "He's been wanting to sell the property for awhile and he finally got a buyer."

I turned and headed for the exit, still wordless.

"Jughead, don't you want your usual?"

Then I said something I don't think I'd ever said before, "I'm not hungry." I headed for the manager's office but I did knock rather than just burst in.

"Yeah?" Midge's dad called out.

Then I went in. "Mr. Klump?"

"Yeah?" he said again.

I blurted out, "Midge says you're closing the drive-in."

I wanted him to deny it, to say that Midge misunderstood, but he said, "Yeah, this Saturday is the last night."

I felt like he'd slugged me. "When were you going to tell me?"

"The deal just got settled this weekend."

"But why?" I asked, feeling like a little kid who's just been told that Halloween has been cancelled. "Your family has owned this place forever."

I knew the history, how his grandfather came back after World War II and started a drive-in, even though everyone told him he was crazy, especially with the fad of television. But he persevered and it became the big local teen hangout, even more than Pop's, although families came to both. His son, this Mr. Klump's dad, kept the place going, through the threats of home video and cable. Maybe in a bigger or less isolated town, with more things to do, more places to go, the Twilight Drive-in (given that wistful name because it was better than "Klump's") might've shut down thirty years ago. I guess I thought that if it could survive all that, it could live through the age of downloads and streaming.

"Well, forever has to end sometime. And I can't keep throwing money down a rathole."

I knew business was down, compared to when I used to go there as a kid with my little sister, Jellybean. But I didn't know it was that dire. Then I felt a twinge of guilt, also related to my family.

"Is this because of the Serpents? Do you want me to talk to my dad?" Not that that would necessarily do any good, but I was willing to try if it might save the drive-in.

To my surprise, Mr. Klump chuckled and said, "Thanks, but they've probably helped more than they've hurt. They scare some of the families away, but some of the young people feel daring, going to a gang hangout."

I wondered if Betty's mom would let her go to the drive-in, whether or not, my dad's gang would show up the last night.

"Anyway, sorry for the short notice. And I'll give you a week from Monday to move your stuff out. That's when the demolition starts."

I'd always figured he knew, but we never talked about it. He hired me at the beginning of my freshman year. It was soon after my mom moved out with my sister, unable to take my dad's drinking and falling apart anymore. So of course he drank and fell apart more. I didn't say at the interview that I was also looking for a place to live, and I didn't plan to move into the projection booth. It started out with me doing my homework there, because I was mostly by myself and even a film buff has his attention wander the third or thirtieth time seeing a movie. And then one night I was too tired to go home and deal with my dad, so I slept on the booth's couch. At some point, it became habit, and eventually I moved my few belongings in. I still stopped by the trailer to get my mail and to check in with my dad. The school still had that as my address.

I never told my friends. Betty's parents were strict but she seemed to have the ideal family, and even Archie, with his parents separated, wouldn't understand what I was dealing with. And maybe it got tangled up with my crush on Betty, which I also couldn't tell either of them about.

And I never told Mr. Klump, but I didn't hide the evidence of my residence from him. I left my schoolbooks and my photo of me and Jellybean in plain sight. He never said anything and I figured he wasn't going to fire me. It's not like I had a lot of competition for this job. Most people want to work the snack bar and the other jobs where they can be social. Not many people want to hide away alone in a dark room and escape to Hollywood fantasies.

"Thanks," I said quietly. "I should get ready for the movie."

After I left, I thought about returning to the snack bar, in case I got hungry later, but I didn't feel like talking to anyone. It would be dark soon, or at least twilight, so I just headed to the projection booth. I counted cars before the movie, just three but it was a Tuesday.

I wanted to text Betty during the movie, but I'd see her the next day. Alone. I wouldn't tell her my feelings, not in the middle of the school day, but I'd tell her about the Twilight closing down, and maybe even confess that I was losing not just my dream job but my home.

I also thought about texting Archie, but there was so much he didn't know. I wasn't even sure if he knew about the plans to go to the drive-in. I wondered if, according to the rules of brotherhood, I should warn him about Veronica's scheme. But I couldn't tell him about the matchmaking, because it wasn't right for me to reveal Betty's crush, even if it made him one of the last to know. And maybe if Veronica was scheming to get him by pretending to help Betty, I should warn Archie, but again, I'd have to reveal Betty's secret.

On weekdays, we'd just show one movie, leaving the double features for weekends. Mr. Klump usually let me choose the lineup, since I knew more about movies, especially classics, than he did. That night it was _Laura,_ about a woman who shows up when she's supposed to have been murdered. I planned it before I considered the possibility that Jason Blossom wasn't dead.

I would have to think of something special for Saturday, the farewell performance. I'd make a list on my laptop later. For now, I just knew I wanted to show _His Girl Friday_ for Wednesday, in honor of my joining the _Blue and Gold_ and conducting an investigation with Betty.

After the movie, when all the cars, including the Klumps', were gone, I raided the snack bar, but all I took was a soda and a hot dog. I did the little bit of first-day-back homework while I ate, and then I went to bed, well, couch.

Before I fell asleep, I imagined holding Betty in my arms, as I'd imagined so often. This time I knew it would never happen on that couch, if anywhere. But at least we could solve a mystery together.


	5. Citizen Kane

It was hard to believe that I was alone with Betty. I thought Veronica at least would crash our working lunch. But she was eating with Archie, and presumably inviting him to the drive-in, if she hadn't already.

I opened the Word doc I'd named "Jolly." "So I know what happened with Jason's disappearance, what Sheriff Keller did and how Jason's family reacted. But what did your parents do about Polly disappearing? Besides, your mom becoming more overprotective."

"Well, they reported Polly's disappearance of course, but we didn't have any clues, like Cheryl's drowning story."

"Which, for all we know, could be true, although I doubt it."

"Yeah."

"I'm sorry, let's get back to Polly." Even if Polly might be alive and Jason not, I felt bad that she kept getting overshadowed by Jason. Was it that he'd been the BMOC and rich, and she was quieter than even Betty, without Betty's high grades and many clubs?

"Well, now we have a clue, but it could be a forgery, like you said. Or written a couple months ago. Or under duress. And I know I should turn it over to the police and/or tell my parents, but if Polly did run away, I want to know why before I give them a chance to catch her."

I nodded. "And if she's in a big city like New York, it'll be hard to track her down."

"Maybe she wants us to think that she's there, so we can't track her down."

"Which we? Your family or the police?"

"Both, I don't know."

She looked like she was going to cry and I didn't know how to comfort her, so instead I asked, "Are you going to go to the drive-in on Saturday?"

"Yeah, Kevin thinks I should, just to know how Archie feels, so I can move on either way."

I swallowed before I said, "Yeah. Um, do you think your mom will let you go? I mean, you'd be with one of the Blossoms, that Andrews boy, and the daughter of a criminal. At the beanie-wearing weirdo's invitation."

"I told her that Midge invited me, like in middle school, when she'd set out a bunch of deck chairs and have a little movie party for her friends."

I remembered those. They were one of my few exceptions to not going to parties, because, hey, free movies? I'm in. (Then a year or two later I got the job at the drive-in and saw free movies all the time.) "Does Midge know she'll need to cover for you?"

"Yeah, I texted her last night. Juggy, she said the drive-in is closing down!"

I nodded. "I found out yesterday, after I left Pop's."

"That's so sad! Especially for you!"

"Yeah," I said quietly.

"I'd go on Saturday, even if Veronica weren't trying to get me together with Archie, just to support you."

"Well, thanks." I thought of bringing up that I wasn't so sure that Veronica was trying to matchmake them, but I had no proof and Betty would probably think I was too suspicious. Instead, I said, "Did Midge tell you why it's closing?"

"Something about losing money and selling to an anonymous buyer."

That was more than the Klumps had told me. "Anonymous?"

"Yeah, she thinks it's some millionaire who wants a tax write-off."

"Some millionaire? Like Veronica's father?"

"Oh, I hadn't thought of that! I figured it was the Blossoms."

That threw me and I wanted to dismiss it, but maybe it gave a new angle to the Blossom boy's disappearance. "Would Jason run away if he knew his parents were going to shut down the drive-in?"

She laughed. "It's not like he's a movie buff like you."

"No, but there may be more to it than we think. Like, maybe the Blossoms were losing money, too, and Jason found out."

"And ran away because he wasn't going to get a big inheritance?"

"No, I mean, well, maybe he threatened to expose that his family isn't as rich as they say. And maybe his parents killed him, or arranged for someone else to kill him."

"Like Cheryl?"

"She could be in on it, offering a dubious cover story, but you're right, she wouldn't commit murder, especially not of her twin brother."

"But why would Cheryl lie to protect her parents, when she was so fond of Jason?"

"I don't know. Maybe they threatened her, too."

"What makes you think the Blossoms aren't really rich?"

"Well, they're rich compared to the Coopers and Andrewses, and they can obviously keep up with the Joneses. But remember when we went to Cheryl's twelfth birthday party? They didn't have any servants! A big old Gothic mansion and no one lived there but the Blossoms."

She smiled. "You actually, willingly went to a party."

"Well, it was a big old Gothic mansion, I had to see it for myself. And Cheryl promised lots of food. I'm more surprised your dad let you go, if he doesn't like the Blossoms."

"I told my folks I felt sorry for her."

I snorted. "Cheryl?"

"I did. Yes, she was popular and rich, or at least rich for Riverdale. But it's like I told Veronica, Cheryl wasn't as well-liked as Jason."

"And she didn't have her minions yet."

Betty laughed guiltily. "Yes, Tina Patel and Ginger Lopez said they had plans. Almost everyone else was busy. But Archie was nice and he said he'd go."

I remembered that that had been another factor. If my two best friends were going, the evening couldn't be too bad. If nothing else, we could laugh about it later. But Betty had ended up crying.

"She was his first," Betty said quietly.

She didn't have to explain. I knew she meant that Cheryl was Archie's first kiss.

There were six of us at the party. Jason and Cheryl of course, me and my best friends, and Polly, because Betty had talked her into it. Mr. and Mrs. Blossom greeted us at the door, but they didn't stick around, which added to the weirdness of the evening. If it had been Betty's birthday, Mrs. Cooper would've hovered the entire party.

There was food, including a birthday cake, and I wished I could leave right after we ate, but Mrs. Andrews wasn't supposed to pick us up for another couple hours, and it wasn't like any of us had cell phones then. So I figured I'd endure the rest of the party as the price of the food. But then Cheryl wanted to play Seven Minutes in Heaven, Ladies' Choice version.

Instead of spinning the bottle, as in some versions, the girls would draw the boys' names out of a hat. I could've pointed out that this was luck rather than choosing, or that there was a one-in-three chance that Cheryl would end up in the closet with her own brother, but I was struck speechless by the idea of having to kiss any girl. I was eleven and, unlike Archie, had the feeling I would never be interested in kissing. But it occurred to me that, unlike Spin the Bottle versions where you'd have to kiss in front of everyone, seven minutes alone with a girl in private meant I didn't have to do anything with her. So I went along with it, mostly out of curiosity to see how it would play out.

The birthday girl went first. I really hoped she wouldn't draw my name out of the '40s hat (with stripes and feathers, like something Rosalind Russell would wear) she tossed three slips of paper into. The Cooper girls were shy and sweet and I knew both of them would understand if I didn't want to touch them. But Cheryl would likely tell everyone at school if I rejected her, or for that matter if I let her kiss me. I wasn't sure which would be more humiliating. But I had a two-in-three chance of escaping.

Cheryl's ruby-red fingernails went into the hat and she pulled out a folded slip of paper. She opened it and smiled with her ruby-red lipstick. "Archie," she whispered.

Archie cleared his throat and said, "OK."

I glanced at Betty, who had a blank expression. Jason looked amused, while Polly looked concerned.

Cheryl led Archie to the other side of the parlor, opened the door, gestured that he should enter, which he did, and then she closed the door behind them. I immediately leapt to my feet and grabbed the piece of paper she'd dropped. "It says 'Archie,' " I murmured.

Jason asked, "Are you calling my sister a liar, Jughead Jones?" But he sounded amused rather than indignant.

I had thought that if she had drawn her brother's name or mine, she would lie and say Archie's. Maybe this was all a scheme to get Archie. I doubted she knew about Betty's crush, when I'd only recently become aware of it myself, and I was one of Betty's best friends. Then again, I wasn't tuned in to romance and Cheryl was. Did she genuinely like Archie or was she just trying to hurt Betty for some reason? Although I'm inclined to think the worst of people, that time I wanted Cheryl to be clueless and thoughtless, rather than her deliberately hurting someone as kind and loving as Betty, who had after all come to the birthday party and brought Polly, when all the other girls at school had snubbed the rich girl.

"No," I muttered and considered throwing the slip away. Then I wondered what would happen if I threw Archie's name back in the hat. It would piss off Cheryl and give Betty a one-in-three chance of picking Archie. (One advantage of Spin the Bottle would've been that it might stop on the same person more than once, and I doubted Archie would've minded kissing all the girls, even if Betty was just a friend.) My hand hovered over the hat on the coffee table.

"No, Jughead," Betty objected, "we have to be fair."

I knew she was making a sacrifice, and her sense of honor impressed me. I nodded, crumpled up the paper, and tried to throw it in the wastebasket. I missed.

Jason chuckled and spent the rest of the seven minutes shooting baskets with the slip of paper. He never missed. The Cooper girls huddled, with Polly's arm protectively around Betty, although they didn't say anything. I ate chips and salsa.

After 420 seconds, Archie and Cheryl returned, he looking self-conscious, she looking triumphant, both of their mouths smeared with ruby red.

"Your turn," she said, picking up the hat and holding it out to Betty.

Betty could've said no. She could've refused to play. But she said, "OK." If she'd been like Veronica, or how I imagine Veronica was at eleven, she would've read Jason's name even if she'd picked me, and then she'd have taken the paper with her. And then she would've used Cheryl's brother in her revenge. But Betty took a slip out and quietly said, "Jughead."

Everyone but Polly looked amused. Archie and the Blossoms probably thought the idea of my being alone with any girl for seven minutes was funny, whether or not anything happened. Polly looked relieved. 

At the time, I thought it was because she was the protective older sister and she knew that, as Betty's best friend and unlike Jason the jock, I wouldn't pressure Betty into kissing me when she so clearly wished she could've had her first kiss with Archie. Looking back now, I wondered if Polly was hoping that she would be the one to get a first kiss from Jason.

I stood up and nodded, so Betty stood up. I let her lead me through the doorway that Archie and Polly had just returned through. I wondered if the next seven minutes would change all our lives as much as the first pair's time had.

I closed the door behind me and looked around the room. It was pretty big for a closet, if smaller than the room we'd left behind. Then I looked at Betty and saw she was crying.

"Don't worry," I tried to joke, "you don't have to kiss me."

"That's not it."

"You're disappointed that you won't get to kiss me? I am pretty irresistible."

This time she laughed. "Oh, Jughead."

I felt a little insulted, although I had been kidding in order to cheer her up. And it wasn't as if I wanted her to want to kiss me. I was pretty sure she was crying because of Archie, but I didn't know if I should say that. I figured she'd cry on Polly's shoulder as soon as she could. It was my job to distract her in the meantime.

"Hey, you know how in old movies about haunted houses there's always a secret panel?" I started feeling along the wall in the semi-darkness.

"Thornhill isn't haunted."

"It looks like it should be. Aha, a wall hanging!"

"In a walk-in closet?" she said skeptically, but she did come closer.

Together we pushed aside the hanging and found a door underneath.

I grinned at her. (I grinned more before high school.) "You wanna go exploring?"

I figured she'd say no. Betty was a good girl who never strayed. And although there was no rule saying we couldn't explore Thornhill, I knew the Blossoms wouldn't like it. But I hoped she'd say yes.

She took a handkerchief out of the front pocket of her jeans, dried her eyes, and said, "OK, but only for five minutes."

"Cool, we can see a lot in five minutes." There was no innuendo in any of this. We were eleven and each in our own ways innocent.

I opened the door, which led to a hallway lit by candles in sconces. To my surprise, Betty took my hand, but I knew she meant it platonically. We crept along the silent corridors, until we reached a door that she nodded at and said, "This one." I wasn't sure what she was looking for, or if she just had a feeling about this room, but I let go of her hand as she turned the knob. The door creaked open and then I jumped out of my skin at the sight of a creepy, old lady in a wheelchair.

"Welcome, Children," she creaked like the door.

"Uh, hello," said Betty, who was braver than I was but still sounded scared.

"I'm so glad you could make it. My grandchild was so looking forward to your visit." She took Betty's hand that I'd held.

"Well, yeah, birthdays are for friends," Betty said, although she wasn't exactly friends with Cheryl.

"And maybe someday more than friends," the old woman said with a roguish wink.

"Excuse me?"

"I'm his nana, he confides in me."

I gestured over my shoulder. "Uh, we've got to get back to the party."

She chuckled like a rusty hinge. "I well know your appetite, Forsythe."

Betty knew my real name and she tried not to laugh. "Goodnight, Mrs. Blossom."

"Goodnight, Dear."

By the time we found our way back to the parlor where we'd left the others, through the door we'd entered however many minutes earlier, only Archie and Cheryl were sitting there, on opposite ends of the same couch. I wondered if they'd kissed some more, and I was sure Betty was wondering that, too. As for Jason and Polly, they were apparently taking their seven minutes in Heaven.

"Well, well, where did you two wander off to?" Cheryl asked.

"A hidden door, a secret passageway," I said, exaggerating only a little. "It was very Scooby Doo."

"I guess that makes you Shaggy."

I knew it was meant as an insult, but I took it as a compliment. I wondered if that made Betty Velma and Archie Fred, but Cheryl was definitely not our Daphne.

"Maybe it doesn't matter though," Betty continued in the _Blue and Gold_ office. "I mean, it's not like they became a couple after that first kiss."

"But they did!" I exclaimed, putting it together for the first time.

"Archie and Cheryl?"

"No, no, Jason and Polly!"

Betty's green eyes widened. "Of course! I mean, maybe they weren't secretly dating for four years, but they probably did kiss that night and she probably had a crush on him before that. And when Nana Blossom talked to me, she thought I was Polly, who Jason must've confided in about his crush."

"She might know something about their disappearance. We need to talk to her."

"If you're not too scared," Betty teased.

"I'll do it for a Scooby snack," I said, making her laugh.


	6. A Few Good Men

I wanted to talk to Jason's grandmother with Betty after school that day, but Betty said we should wait. It wasn't like we could just waltz into Thornhill and interview the dowager. We'd have to talk to her without her son or daughter-in-law finding out. We'd probably have to go through Cheryl, which was problematic when we didn't know her role in this. Even if Cheryl had helped rather than hurt her brother, she might not want their grandmother giving anything away. Not to mention that Nana Blossom was possibly demented and we'd have to approach her cautiously.

Betty thought we should wait until at least the next week, since she might find a way to bring it up with Cheryl at the drive-in. I was dubious about that, but I didn't have a better plan, so I went along with it. I figured Betty would be too distracted Saturday night by her confession to Archie, but maybe it was an opportunity to talk to Cheryl outside of school. Who knows? Maybe Veronica could help with that.

I went to Pop's after school again, not that there was anything remarkable about that. Even before I moved into the Twilight, the diner was sort of my home away from home.

I took out my laptop and as always managed not to drip ketchup on it as I typed up my mental notes from lunch, the things Betty and I talked about and the things I remembered from four years before. Nothing to do with romance, or only as it related to the mystery of Jason and Polly.

I was just finishing up the part about Nana Blossom when I saw Archie come in. I was happy to see him, since we'd hardly talked since our weekend getaway and it felt like a lot had happened in just the last couple days. It might be a little awkward, but we had to start reconnecting sometime.

He waved, came over to my booth, and sat down.

Pop came by to take his order but he said, "Just orange juice. I'm in training."

Pop nodded but I waited until he dropped off the juice before I asked, "In training for what?"

"Football," Archie said as if that was a stupid question.

"I thought you were all into music now."

He sighed and took a sip of o.j. "It's complicated, Jug."

Another nickname on my nickname, but an old one, so I ignored it. "OK."

"Well, I fell in love with music this summer. But my dad really wants me to stick with football, because it might be a way to pay for college. And, I know this is ghoulish, but there is an opening for squad captain with Jason gone."

"So you're going to try for captain?"

"Coach Clayton thinks I should. He, well, he thinks I'm a nicer person than Reggie, so he'd rather have me as captain." His ears had a Ron-Weasley-like habit of turning as red as his hair when he was embarrassed, and they were definitely reddening as he repeated the coach's compliment.

"What about Chuck as captain? Or would that be nepotism?"

"Chuck is still playing and he's really good, but he told me he doesn't want to be captain because he wants time to work on his graphic novel."

Chuck Clayton was a talented illustrator and he and I had once talked about collaborating, but it hadn't gone anywhere, maybe because I was a loner. "Did you tell him you want time to work on your music?" 

"Yeah, and he understands but he still thinks I should go for it since Reggie is a grandstander rather than a leader."

"What about Moose?

"Well, he doesn't have a strategic mind."

That was Archie's nice way of saying Moose was an idiot. Although, "You gotta admit, he is managing to juggle both Midge and Kevin without her finding out."

"So far. And he hasn't actually gone out with Kevin yet."

I was about to reply when I saw Moose come into the diner with Reggie. I said, "So what's going on with your music?"

Archie looked confused by the change in subject but eagerly said, "Well, I talked to Valerie yesterday—"

"Damn, Andrews, are you after every girl in school?" Reggie had wandered over to our booth, while Moose was getting their pick-up order from Pop. "Not that I'm not impressed by your stamina, but are you going to have the energy for captain try-outs next week after playing with a Pussycat and backseating with your harem of every hair color?"

It wasn't just Archie's ears that turned red this time, although it was anger as well as embarrassment now. "We're just going to the drive-in because it's the last night."

"Who cares? I mean, Moose isn't even bothering to go, and it's his girlfriend's family's drive-in."

It was a real struggle to bite my tongue about both the reason why Moose wasn't going and the reason why everyone in Riverdale should care about the Twilight. I'm sure I was turning red myself, although I generally try to look cool and stoic.

"Only losers like Jones still actually watch movies, especially old movies, at theaters."

"I'm sorry you don't have a date for Saturday, Reggie," Archie said, nice on the surface, vicious underneath, as if he'd been taking lessons from Veronica.

Reggie scowled and might've replied, but Moose came over with two take-out bags and said, "Come on, Reggie, we need to get to my place before the movie starts because I don't know how to TiVo."

Reggie turned his scowl towards Moose and snapped, "How long have you had cable?"

"Just five years."

Reggie looked like he was going to insult his friend and then thought better of it, given Moose's girth. Archie and I waited until they left before we looked at each other and laughed.

"What movie do you think they're watching?" he asked.

I shrugged. "Probably soft-core straight porn. And they want to watch it before Moose's parents get home from work."

"He's definitely not out to Reggie."

"I think he's barely out to himself."

"Poor Kevin."

"Yeah, but maybe karaoke will be a game-changer." I wondered if that night would be a game-changer for Betty and Archie, but I could hardly say that of course.

"Yeah. Are you sad about the Twilight?"

I wanted to tell him about living there, but I already felt self-conscious because of his pity. "It hasn't really sunk in."

He nodded. "Yeah, for me either." He cleared his throat before adding, "Uh, my dad told me last night."

"How did he know?" Mr. Andrews knew and got along with most of the parents in town, but I never noticed that he was besties with Mr. Klump.

"Well, he got the demolition and rebuilding contract."

"WHAT???" I definitely couldn't be cool and stoic now.

"Yeah, he says it's some anonymous buyer."

I shook my head. "I don't get this, Man. How does that work, for someone to do business without revealing who they are?"

He shrugged. "Well, there's a corporation that owns another business."

"Like an umbrella?"

"Yeah, something like that. Anyway, he'll get paid and everything, just like Mr. Klump will, but we won't know who's behind it."

I couldn't believe I was suggesting this, but I said, "You should talk to Veronica about it."

"Uh, I don't think that's a good idea, Jug."

"Why not?" I wondered if he would confess to a crush on her and if I should warn Betty to not confess her own. Well, maybe this was one of Archie's passing fancies and if he knew he could have the real thing with Betty, he'd go for it.

"Well, it would be awkward because of her dad."

"Do you know why he's in jail?" I'd meant to Google it, but I'd been too distracted.

"Yeah, Kevin told me and she confirmed it later."

"Well?"

He sighed. "He's doing time for real estate fraud."

"What?" I tried to restrain my surprise that time.

"So it would be a sore subject with her."

"I can see that."

"My dad feels bad about the drive-in, Jug. For our sake, especially yours, but also for his own memories. But it's a big contract and he needs the money, especially with my mom gone."

I shook my head. "I don't blame him. It would happen even if he said no, and I'd rather the money go to someone who deserves it." I liked Mr. Andrews. He was a good man, honest and hard-working, with more integrity than most of the adults in Riverdale. He'd been there for me at times when my own dad wasn't.

"Well, thanks. He's going on Saturday to support you and the Twilight, even though he has to tear it down. Uh, I was going to go with him, for old times' sake, but then Veronica invited me."

I wanted to ask how he felt about that, if he thought it was a date where Betty and Cheryl would make themselves scarce, or at least let him slip away into the darkness with the mysterious brunette.

Then he added, "It'll be weird hanging out with two girls I hardly know, especially Veronica, but at least good old Betty will be there."

"Yeah, good old Betty. Uh, listen, I've got to get to work, but it was good talking to you again." There was a lot still left unsaid, but it was a start.

"Yeah, definitely. And maybe we can talk a little on Saturday at the Twilight, if you're not too busy."

I thought it was more likely he'd be too busy, although not in the way that Reggie thought. "I'll see if I can squeeze you in."

He chuckled. "Thanks. Do you know what you're going to show?"

"I'm still thinking it over." I didn't say that I'd had a lot of distractions, but I thought he understood, the way best friends do.


	7. Rebel Without a Cause

Thursday I had lunch with the same people I had lunch with on Tuesday, except Archie didn't run off in the middle of it after Valerie. I felt bad that I hadn't talked to him more about his music when it was just us, but I hoped we'd have other chances. I tried not to think about how Jason and maybe Polly had thought there would be more time to talk to the people who matter.

Veronica greeted me with "OK, Jones, you really need to commit."

I tried not to choke on the cafeteria's casserole. We were eating inside because it was raining. I hoped it would clear up by Saturday, although maybe bad weather would be fitting for the last night of the Twilight.

The drive-in was apparently on Veronica's mind, too, because she set her tray next to Betty's, squeezed in between her and Archie, and said, "How are you going to advertise closing night when you don't even know what you're doing for a finale?"

I swallowed carefully. "We don't really advertise. Most people go to the Twilight to socialize."

"And to make out."

I didn't point out that Kevin didn't know this from personal experience. His hookups were in more private locations. At least he'd made out with people, which was more than I could say, not that it had ever mattered to me until a couple months ago.

Veronica argued, "But people should at least know what to put on social media if they want to invite their friends."

"Why don't you make it a mystery?" Betty suggested. "I mean, not the mystery genre, unless you wanted. But be mysterious about it."

I couldn't help smiling a little. "Yeah, build up the anticipation, keep 'em guessing."

"You're such a tease, Jughead." Kevin would sometimes do this semi-flirtation at me. He thought I was safe because I was asexual and not his type, like Archie was.

"Wait until you see the big reveal," I semi-flirted back, because he was safe.

"Sadly, I'm not going to be there," he reminded me.

I knew we couldn't directly refer to his karaoke date, since there was less privacy in the cafeteria than at our table out on the lawn. We had to protect Moose's closeted state.

Veronica said, "I'll let you know what you're missing, Kev." I knew she meant the gossip, although he would hear Betty's version as soon as she'd processed Archie's reaction, good, bad, or indifferent. No, please, not indifferent. That would hurt Betty more than an automatic rejection.

Archie contributed even less to that lunchtime conversation than he had to Tuesday's. I don't know if he was distracted by his football vs. music dilemma or if he was still wondering why Veronica wanted him to go to the drive-in with two other girls, but all he said on this topic was, "A musical might be a fun finale," which made Kevin give Betty an _Are we sure he's not gay?_ look.

I went to Pop's after school again, but I knew ahead of time I wouldn't see Archie or Betty again. He was going to meet with Valerie to practice music, and Betty was going to meet with Veronica to decide on a look for the drive-in.

I'd overheard Veronica by Betty's locker, "Casual but fun."

Betty used to dress like the tomboy she was, but then we started middle school and her mother put her into pastels and sweater sets. I thought she looked cute either way, but obviously she would need to wear something else to catch Archie's roving eye.

If the girls had been willing to wait a week, Veronica could've put Betty in a sexy but tasteful dress. There was going to be a dance and everyone could've gone as friends, although they might not leave that way. Veronica could've left Cheryl out of it, since they wouldn't need a car to sit in. I don't know if I'd have gone, since dances aren't really my thing. The drive-in was my home turf, and I'd be watching from a safe distance, rather than standing awkwardly by the punch bowl, as my crush danced with her crush. But Veronica thought the timing was better this way. If things worked out for Archie and Betty, they could go to the dance as an established couple.

She didn't say much about what would happen if things didn't work out for Archie and Betty. I had the feeling that the "inner circle" would not attend the dance, even as friends.

After my snack at Pop's, I went to the drive-in, a routine that would soon break. I got my dinner from Ethel, which was a relief, because I felt awkward around Midge, not just because her dad was going to evict me soon but because I knew something about her boyfriend that she didn't. Ethel was disappointed about the Twilight closing down but she'd already applied at the Bijou, which showed a mix of new and old movies but was a walk-in theater.

"You should apply, Jughead. They're increasing their staff because they think business will pick up once the Twilight's gone."

It was tempting, but even if I got to be a projectionist rather than one of the more public roles, I wouldn't get to choose the films. The Bijou planned their schedule weeks in advance. They welcomed feedback and suggestions but it wouldn't be the same as the free rein Mr. Klump had given me.

I told Ethel I'd think about it, then I paid for my order (staff discount), and went home. As I did my homework, I tried not to wonder what home I'd work from in a week and a half. I speculated about a lot of things, but I couldn't see my own future clearly.

That night I showed _Rebel Without a Cause,_ the granddaddy of misunderstood-teenager movies. I thought of lines from the Marlon Brando movie _The Wild One,_ which was two years older but not quite as iconic:

"What are you rebelling against, Johnny?"

"Whaddaya got?"

Did I have a cause? Was I even a rebel? Maybe I was the truest conservative in town, stuck in the past, afraid of change. Maybe the past was my cause, the best of it I mean.

Perhaps I should have chained myself to the projection booth, or the snack bar if I really wanted to make a statement. But what would that accomplish? Mr Klump wasn't going to buy the drive-in back and the new owners, whoever they were, wouldn't be swayed by some weird homeless kid. And I didn't want to take a job away from Mr. Andrews. I'd told myself that the Twilight was an important part of Riverdale, but I didn't know if that was true anymore. Maybe I was just being selfish.

I decided to focus on finding out the truth about Jason and Polly, a cause that I hoped was more my speed.

Friday I didn't even stop at Pop's after school. Why not break the routine early? It would've been the last time I could go between school and work, but maybe I didn't need a Last Time for everything.

Also, I wanted to be a hermit until I had to deal with whatever storm was coming Saturday night. I meant figurative storm, since the weather prediction was supposed to be clear and warm. It was still technically summer.

My choice for Friday's movie was one that I knew wouldn't exactly pack 'em in, and it wasn't like it was one of my favorites. But it was a different sort of teen movie than the one the night before, one about a "typical" American teenage boy, girl-crazy, constantly making mistakes but good-hearted. It was a year older than Riverdale, before typical American teenage boys went off to fight World War II. It was ninth in a series of sixteen. It was _Andy Hardy Meets Debutante_. (Not "a debutante," not "the debutante," just "debutante.")

Andy has a crush on a glamorous New York debutante, although he already has a girlfriend. He ends up with his platonic friend, Betsy, because he's Mickey Rooney and she's Judy Garland. For obvious reasons, not related to the box office, I wouldn't dare show it on Saturday.

I spent most of Saturday morning and afternoon alternating between homework, looking through the Twilight's film collection, and Googling about the Blossoms and Hiram Lodge. Archie was right about why Veronica's father was imprisoned. What he hadn't mentioned, and maybe she and Kevin hadn't told him, was that most of the Lodges' holdings were seized by the government. They weren't poor but they weren't rich anymore. Comfortable maybe.

I doubted that Mr. Lodge was the anonymous buyer, unless he somehow got a loan in jail. That didn't necessarily mean the Blossoms had bought the drive-in, if my theory about them not being that rich either was correct. Maybe the buyer had no real connection to Riverdale. Maybe this was a dead end, at least as it related to Jason's disappearance.

The day slipped away and then the twilight came.


	8. The Last Picture Show

The stage was set. I'd texted Ben Button what to put on the marquee, and I could see him climbing down the ladder, leaving behind the words "TWILIGHT'S END," and then the titles of the double feature. I decided in the end that no matter what I picked, nothing could sum up what movies meant to me or this town. And it wasn't the end of movies, even for Riverdale. It was just one venue closing.

One thing I would miss about this job was watching the audience. My projection booth was not a panopticon. I did not have a 360-degree view. I sometimes called it my limited omniscient perspective. I could observe without being observed, but if people moved out of my line of sight, then I'd lose the thread. And it was always a silent movie, because I couldn't hear them through the glass. And they were usually too far away for me to read lips. Some of the time they were in their cars of course, and I'd have to wait for them to reemerge.

Was I voyeuristic or just aloof? What would happen to me after I lost the Twilight? Would I rejoin the human race or maybe get sucked into the Internet?

I counted cars as they parked. It wasn't a bad turnout, not packed but respectable. I knew that even if we were showing premieres of the hottest films of the year, there would always be people who just wouldn't go to a drive-in. And even if the lot had been jammed every night that week, it wouldn't have been enough to save the Twilight. Maybe I could've done a GoFundMe if I'd known weeks ago, but I sort of had the feeling that Mr. Klump didn't want to save his family's legacy. He was happy to move on, embrace change.

I looked for familiar cars with familiar faces. Some of them were people I didn't know outside the Twilight: families, friends, couples, and even loners. Regulars and occasionals. I'd made stories in my head about all of them.

I couldn't reshape the people I knew, but when Cheryl's cherry red convertible pulled in, I couldn't help wondering what was going through her head, and the heads of her passengers. I noticed that Archie was riding shotgun, while Betty and Veronica were in the back. That seemed like Cheryl's doing rather than Veronica's, although for all I knew it was Archie's choice.

Then I was distracted by another familiar vehicle. Archie had said his dad would be there, so I wasn't surprised to see their truck, but the passenger did surprise me. I had figured Mr. Andrews would show up on his own or maybe with a buddy. It hadn't occurred to me that he'd bring a woman. As far as I knew, he didn't date despite his separation. And if he was going to bring a date to the drive-in, the last one I'd expect would be Mrs. Lodge.

I really wanted to text Archie but I resisted. Maybe he didn't know yet, and he was with Veronica and she might not know either. I didn't want to make their evening more awkward than it was. And maybe his dad and her mom were just there as friends, although I couldn't imagine how they'd even met. Well, I could imagine it, but I'd wait until everyone had gone home and I was the Phantom of the Twilight again.

We never had exact show times at the drive-in. Sometimes, like in the summer, I wouldn't even wait for the sun to go down. In the winter, I wouldn't start until I had pitch darkness, a world of black sky and white ground. No matter what movie, what genre, I always started with cheesy refreshment ads, older than the first Forsythe P. Jones. They set the mood, not really carrying anyone, even the elderly, back in time, but reminding people to willingly suspend their disbelief. And to visit our snack bar.

After that night's ads, I played the first half of the last double feature. It would not fill half the time, but I felt it had at least half of the influence. It was over one hundred years old and had changed movies forever.

It was _The Great Train Robbery_ from 1903. It was one of the first movies to have an actual plot, rather than just people doing things in flickering moving images. It was the first Western and there were action scenes and chase scenes, and even a dance number. And the final image of the gun pointed at the audience broke the fourth wall.

It was only eleven minutes long, and I think some of the drive-in patrons were still settling in when it ended. Then some of them came out of their cars and headed for the snack bar, Archie and Betty among them. I watched the two of them until they were out of my line of sight.

This was it. I imagined that Veronica had suggested Betty and Archie be the ones to go get refreshments. Archie would think nothing of it. Betty would try not to look self-conscious. Would Cheryl notice? Would she mock Betty? Maybe she'd be kind enough to just gossip with Veronica.

Would Betty get up her nerve to tell Archie or would she chicken out? Would she say something on the way to the snack bar or on the way back? Would she lead him somewhere relatively quiet and isolated?

And how would he react if and when she told him? Would he be surprised? Flattered? Uncomfortable? Excited? I didn't know how I wanted him to react. I wanted Betty to be happy and it wasn't like her interest in Archie came out of nowhere. And they were my best friends. It felt selfish to want her myself, and foolish when she really wanted Archie.

Even if he rejected her, I couldn't go after her on the rebound. That would be a douchebag move worthy of Reggie Mantle. I would be a loyal, supportive friend, to both of them, even if I was caught in the middle.

I tried to give a long enough intermission for Betty to say what she had to say and for Archie to react. I tried to keep my eyes focused on the cherry red convertible. Soon Betty and Archie would return, with or without snacks. I sometimes would play trailers during intermission, whether or not I planned them for coming attractions. That night I showed newsreels from 1941.

I gave Betty as much chance as I could. But there was no sign of her or Archie returning to Cheryl's car. Were they still talking? Had she gone home in tears? Were they kissing behind the snack bar? I desperately wanted to text her, but I didn't want to interrupt.

Cars started impatiently honking. I sighed and started the next movie.

It was an award-winner and a classic. It was a grand spectacle with powerful performances. It was racist and sexist. It was _Gone with the Wind_.

I didn't get past the credits before I thought I heard someone knocking quietly on my door. Normally, I would've ignored it, especially if it was someone complaining about my choice of movie. But I thought it might be Betty, come to report in person how it went with Archie. I promised myself to keep my own feelings secret, whether I had to be happy for her or sympathetic.

It was Betty. She looked like she'd been crying. It was possible she was just mad at herself for not being brave enough to tell Archie, but it was more likely that he'd rejected her. I was sure he'd done it as gently as possible, but in some ways that was worse. If she'd had an unrequited crush on Reggie, she'd get over him faster because he was a jerk. Not to mention that Archie lived next door and she'd have to see him at and outside of school.

"Can I come in?"

"Yeah, of course." I stepped aside and opened the door wider. I thought about joking that I had the best view at the drive-in, but maybe it wasn't the moment to joke.

She stepped in, looked around, and gasped. "Jughead, do you live here?"

I'd sort of forgotten she didn't know. When I'd imagined her, Archie, and Veronica hanging out there that night, I'd figured I'd either confess my living situation ahead of time, or I'd hide the evidence before they came over. "It's just temporary."

"For how long?"

"A year," I said quietly.

Her green eyes got big. "Oh, Juggy!"

"Why have you started calling me that?" I asked, to change the subject, although I did want to know.

"You don't like it?"

"No, it's fine. Just don't call me 'Juggikins.' "

I made her laugh, but it was the kind of laugh that turns into a sob. I could've kicked myself, because I'd reminded her that Veronica called Archie "Archikins," and he'd probably told her that he prefers Veronica.

I was about to apologize when Archie showed up on the little set of stairs that led to the projection booth. "Jug, is Betty here?"

She said words I never thought I'd hear her say, "Go away, Archie!"

Running up the steps, he said, "Betty, we need to talk."

"There's nothing left to say."

Part of me felt like I should leave and give them privacy to hash this out, and part of me wanted to watch it unfold. But if Betty really didn't want to talk to Archie right then, maybe I should make him leave. After all, it was my home and my castle, for another week or so.

Then Archie looked around and said, "Jughead, do you live here?"

I was having de ja vu, especially when Kevin ran over and asked, "Is Betty here?"

She came to the door. "Kevin, what's wrong?"

"I need to show you something. You and Jughead."

"What is it?" I assumed it wasn't a hickey from Moose.

"It's outside. Hurry!"


	9. Into the Woods

Betty bolted down the steps without asking for details, although she was probably grateful for any excuse to get away from Archie. I hesitated for several reasons, including that I wasn't supposed to abandon my post for longer than a restroom break.

"It's about Jason," Kevin stage-whispered.

I looked at Archie, who looked confused, while still concerned about Betty. "Arch, can you mind the booth for me?"

Now Archie looked overwhelmed. "Me? What do I do?"

"Just make sure the movie keeps playing OK." I'd checked the DVD for scratches and I didn't think it would skip or freeze. ( _The Great Train Robbery_ was on film, the only format the Klumps owned, but obviously not an original copy. I had had films break, and then everyone would honk impatiently while I did quick repairs or switched out movies. That was one thing I wouldn't miss about this job.)

"And if it doesn't?"

I glanced at the impatient look on Kevin's face and realized I didn't have time to pass on everything Dilton Doiley taught me and the rest of the Riverdale Middle School AV geek squad.

"It'll be fine. And the movie is four hours long, so I'll be back way before it's over." I was very glad I hadn't gone with _A Trip to the Moon_ (1902), because that's eighteen minutes and I had the feeling that whatever Kevin had to show us was going to take longer than that.

Archie looked like he wanted to go with us, but I didn't think Betty wanted that, and Kevin hadn't invited him. Besides, Archie had made it pretty clear that he was bored by the Jason Blossom mystery.

"Let's go!" Betty snapped. I wasn't used to her taking charge, but I liked it, as long as she wasn't going to turn into Veronica.

I waved goodbye to Archie and then headed down the projection booth steps. "How was karaoke?"

I guess that wasn't discreet enough, because Kevin shushed me. Then he led me and Betty to the edge of the woods at the back of the drive-in. I silently wondered if the Klumps owned the forest, too, and if it was part of the real estate deal. Maybe if they didn't sell it off, I could move there, although it'd be rough in the winter.

"What happened with Moose?" Betty whispered, although there was no one around, not even the South Side Serpents. I really hoped my dad and his gang wouldn't show up, although I guess they had as much right as anyone to bid farewell to the drive-in.

Kevin looked around and then eagerly whispered, "Well, karaoke was a lot of fun. Moose was shy about singing at first, but I encouraged him. And we got flirty when we sang together, like on 'Islands in the Stream.' "

I crossed my arms. "Do you have to go into detail like this?"

"I'm setting a scene, Colden." I knew he was teasing me about my writing because at one point I was considering the pen name Colden Haulfield. (Hey, I was twelve.)

"Don't mind him, Kevin. You know Jughead is allergic to romance."

I really didn't want to go into that right then, so I said, "What does this have to do with Jason?"

"I'm getting to that. I suggested we go for a walk, so we went outside. It wasn't dark yet but sunset would be soon. We flirted a little about that. And then I kissed him."

"Awww!" Despite what had happened with Archie, and at that point I still didn't know, Betty could still be touched by romance. Even I was not as unmoved as they thought, although I didn't like Moose deceiving Midge.

"He'd never kissed a boy before and he'd wondered what it was like."

Betty looked like she wanted to ask what it was like, but it wouldn't be the same for her as it'd been for Moose, would it? And whoever gave her her first kiss someday, he wouldn't be Archie. Unless I was misreading her. Maybe she had kissed Archie instead of telling him with words. If so, then his rejection must've hurt even more, although I could understand his surprise.

"I bet he liked it," Betty gently teased.

Kevin blushed a little. "Well, he kissed me, I mean he initiated a kiss. And then when we started walking again, we held hands."

Betty let out a happy little squee and I felt like Kevin should've invited Veronica instead of me to hear this story. But I waited as patiently as I could for him to reveal the connection to Jason. Maybe it would turn out Moose had had a crush on Jason. Not that that would explain Jason's disappearance, unless Moose had hit on him and he'd fled.

"And then we found something." Kevin brushed aside a branch and led us into the forest.

I thought of the fairytales of children going into the woods. It was always a boy and/or a girl, never two boys and a girl. So we were probably safe from whatever lurked in the woods.

It took me more than a moment to see them. We were still in shouting distance from the Technicolor screen, the headlights, the glow of the snack bar, but we might as well have been on the dark side of the moon. (With a pang, I realized that I'd never get to fulfill my promise to Jellybean about playing the Pink Floyd album through the car radios while _The Wizard of Oz_ was on the screen.)

Then the small but strong glow of a cellphone reflected on a dark car. After that, I saw that the only beast was a moose, leaning against the car. He nodded hello at me and Betty, turned off his phone, and straightened up. Kevin went to him and they hugged. I thought I heard Kevin murmur the word "promise" before they let go.

Moose waved goodbye to me and Betty before making his way surprisingly silently along a dirt road I could barely see.

Kevin watched him go and then turned to us as if there'd been no interruption. "A car with keys in it."

I had to process that. He and Moose found a car with keys in it.

"Oh, Kev, why would you steal a car?"

He opened the right rear door and said, "Get in."

"What?" she said.

"You're me."

Betty looked at me and I was sure she was thinking that Kevin was as crazy as Nana Blossom.

He sighed impatiently. "We found an unlocked car and I got inside, and you can lecture me later, Elizabeth Cooper, but for now I need you to be me."

She hesitated and then got in and sat nervously on the backseat.

"Wait a minute, am I Moose?" Where was he going with this?

"Unless you want to switch places with Betty."

"I'll be Moose," I muttered and slid in next to Betty, who made room for me.

Kevin went around and got in the driver's seat, then turned his head like he was the dad scolding the squabbling kids on a road trip. Instead of saying, "Don't make me turn this car around," he said, "He's closeted. Where could we go to be alone? So we borrowed the car, even though we knew it might belong to some homophobe who'd beat us up or at least call the police."

I pointed out, "He wouldn't have to be a homophobe to call the cops for grand theft auto."

Kevin shook his head. "We didn't take it anywhere, not till after."

"After?" Betty echoed.

"We got in the backseat and giggled like two naughty little kids."

My imagination failed me as I tried to picture Moose giggling. The karaoke was enough of a stretch.

"Then we kissed and eventually necked." He paused and I really hoped he wasn't expecting us to act this out. Even giggling like Moose was beyond my thespian skills.

"But why did you take the car?" Betty asked, since the crime had apparently pushed the Moovin shipping out of her brain.

"Lie down, Betty."

"What?"

"You're me. Lie down and put your head in his lap."

"Whoa, whoa, wait a minute!" I protested.

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Colden. I put my head in his lap and he stroked my hair."

"Awww!" OK, Betty was still a Kevoose shipper.

"But why do we have to act this out?"

"It's just hair, Green Aro. And you'll understand why if you play along."

I didn't acknowledge the nickname, which was almost as clever as he thought. I looked at Betty and we both nodded.

So she lay down with her head in my lap. I lightly stroked her soft, silky, blonde ponytail, from the rubber band to the ends that were never split.

(My own hair care wasn't great in those days. It was a pain to bathe at the sinks of the old, smelly, and vandalized-by-Serpents restrooms, and shampooing was even harder. Sometimes I'd get to school early and use the showers in the boys' locker room. Luckily, it had been years since anyone had seen me without my hat.)

"That's nice," Betty said so faintly that I could barely hear her. I hoped that our audience couldn't hear.

"It felt good, gentler and more tender than I expected from Moose. But strong and sexy, too. I shivered."

Betty wasn't shivering. She was lying very still. But she was just a friend, listening to another friend tell us about his romantic evening.

"He asked if I was cold. I knew a line when I heard one, so I said yes. But this was Moose, and when he said, 'I'll turn on the heater,' it wasn't a euphemism."

I let out a chuckle, although I still wasn't sure where this was going.

"He gently pushed my head off his lap and got up enough to lean over the front seat. Well, Jughead?"

I was startled, partly by his reverting to my usual nickname, but I didn't question it this time. I skipped the dialogue but I followed the stage directions. I gently pushed Betty's head off my lap and got up enough to lean over the front seat. I assumed that I would then turn the key so I could put the heater on.

But Kevin turned on the light of his phone and said, "Then Moose found something in the shotgun seat."

For a moment, I expected it to be a shotgun, but when I turned my head, it looked like an article of clothing. "A jacket?" I guessed.

"He gave you some stranger's jacket to wear and then you drove off with the car?"

"Not quite. He recognized it as a Riverdale High letterman jacket, so of course he picked it up."

I knew what to do. I picked up the jacket and unfolded it, so that I could see the name I knew would be there.

From the backseat came the gasp of "Jason Blossom!"


	10. Support Your Local Sheriff

Yes, Kevin could've just told us that Moose found Jason's jacket in an abandoned car out by the highway, two months after Jason's disappearance. But, despite my impatience while the tale was unfolding, I did respect his theatrical skills.

"Why didn't you call the police?" Betty was sitting up again.

"Yeah," I said, "your dad is sheriff. He could've picked up the car and you wouldn't have had to drive it back to Riverdale."

"Moose is closeted," Kevin reminded us. "He wants to stay out of this."

"But won't his fingerprints be on the jacket?" Betty asked.

Kevin sighed. "Probably. I didn't know what to do. And Moose was freaked out about finding a dead guy's jacket. Then I remembered Veronica telling me that you two are investigating Jason's disappearance for the school newspaper."

"So you brought us clues before going to your dad?"

"Aw, Kev, that's so sweet!"

"Thanks, but it was more that I need your advice. Should I take this car to the station or just leave it here in hopes someone finds it?"

I shook my head. "With Moose's fingerprints on the jacket and yours on the steering wheel and wherever?"

"OK, OK, I'll drive it to the station."

"No, Kevin, you don't have a license!"

Kevin and I looked at each other and smiled but didn't laugh. It was just so Betty. Never mind that Kevin had already driven the car on the highway.

She opened her door. "I'm going to get Cheryl."

I sank onto the backseat and asked, "Why?", as Kevin cried, "Wait!"

She turned to look at me again. "She's his sister. She needs to know. Besides, she has a driver's licence."

I didn't want Cheryl to be a part of this. She definitely wasn't part of our inner circle. But even if the mystery belonged to me and Betty, Jason belonged to his twin. I nodded at Betty again. She smiled a little.

"OK," Kevin said and we both looked at him. "Just promise you'll leave Moose out of it."

"Of course." She patted Kevin's shoulder and stepped outside, closing the door gently but firmly.

Kevin and I didn't say anything for a minute and then he asked, "Did she tell Archie?"

I told him the little I knew. I left out Betty and Archie finding out my living situation. Kevin hadn't entered the projection booth and he couldn't have known that secret. It was hard enough that my best friends knew.

"Poor Betty. And poor Archie, too."

"Yeah." I was afraid to say any more. I didn't want to give myself away.

"Anyway, Ace, I'm sorry you had to deal with other people's drama tonight."

I didn't tell him that I enjoyed the drama as a spectator, just not as a participant. Instead I asked, "What's with all the nicknames?"

"Sorry, Veronica's bad influence."

I supposed it could be worse. I wanted to ask him about Veronica. What was she doing in Riverdale? What were her plans for Archie? Did she know what was going on with her mother and Archie's father? Was her father the anonymous buyer? But even if she'd confided in Kevin, I doubted he'd pass any of that on to me.

Then he said, "I'm sorry about the drive-in."

"Thanks."

"I wanted to go tonight, but it was too public for a first date."

More than karaoke? Or was that different because none of our classmates were there?

"Anyway, I know it's not the same, but I heard the Bijou is hiring."

It wasn't the same. "Yeah, thanks."

Then I saw a beam of light at the edge of the woods. I turned and could distinguish two figures, which resolved themselves into Cheryl and Betty. Cheryl went around and tapped on the driver's side window before yanking open the door.

"Where's the jacket?" she demanded.

I realized I was still holding it. I passed it up to Kevin, who handed it to her.

Betty was standing next to Cheryl and by the light of Betty's phone I could see Cheryl cradling the jacket like a baby. Was she as crazy as her grandmother? Then she tossed the jacket onto the backseat floor like it was worthless and said, "Slide over, Keller."

He obeyed and Betty opened the back door and sat beside me. It looked like the two of us were going to the police station, too, although we hadn't discussed it. Maybe Betty had asked to go, or maybe Cheryl had insisted on it.

Cheryl must've been paying attention when I showed _All About Eve_ a month before, because she said, "Fasten your seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy night."

Kevin and Betty must've taken her literally, because I was the only one who slid around when she did a quick one-eighty. I slammed into Betty and tried not to notice how soft she was. I mumbled sorry and then was spun against my door, bracing myself just in time. I hastened to do my seatbelt in the moment I had before Cheryl shot down the road, presumably churning up the dust.

"The fast and the furious," I murmured.

I think Betty smiled a little. She'd turned off her phone again and it was dark in the car, with darkness surrounding us until we hit downtown. I don't remember anyone saying anything else. There were too many secrets in the car.

Even when Cheryl parked, we didn't discuss strategy, what to reveal, what to keep hidden. She pocketed the keys, got out, and slammed the car door. The other three of us quickly unbuckled and scrambled out of the car.

I took a moment to actually look at the outside of the car under the street lights. "That's a beautiful car," I said, although I wasn't the car nut my dad was. It was black with a white arrow on the side.

"Classic," Kevin agreed, although he knew even less about cars than I did.

"1960 Chevy Impala," Betty said, nodding.

Cheryl rolled her eyes over her shoulder and then strode into the police station on her impossibly high red heels. (I have no idea how she was able to walk to and in the woods in near darkness.) We followed her.

Kevin's father was at the front desk, talking to a deputy. They looked up in surprise, I think mostly at the presence of Cheryl.

"Dad, can we talk to you?"

Sheriff Keller seemed to know that Kevin meant without anyone else around, since he nodded and led us to his office. The two Kellers took the only chairs in the room, while I shut the door behind me. The girls stood on either side of Kevin's chair.

He told a shorter, Mooseless version of the discovery of the jacket, which Betty had picked up from the floor before getting out of the car. I don't know if it was because Cheryl was there or because he was talking to his dad, but Kevin said he took the bus out to the karaoke bar, alone. He met a guy his age from another town. They hit it off and went for a walk. They found an unlocked car with keys in the ignition and a Riverdale High letterman jacket on the front passenger seat.

Kevin paused and looked up at Betty. She nodded and set the jacket on the desk. The sheriff smoothed it out and looked at the name.

"Where's the car?"

"Out front," Cheryl said.

I expected him to ask how it got there from the highway by the karaoke bar. Instead he said, "Do you kids want me to drop you off at home?"

"I need to get back to work," I said, not mentioning that the drive-in was my home, for a few days more anyway.

"And Veronica's probably wondering where I am." Cheryl made it sound like she had come to the drive-in with only one passenger, as if Archie and Betty didn't matter.

"I want to go home," Betty said quietly. "Just not in a police car."

Sheriff Keller grunted instead of laughing. "I'll drop you off a couple blocks from your place."

"Thank you, Sir." So polite, so Betty.

He led us back to the reception area, but he went over to the desk and spoke quietly to the deputy. I could just see the back of his head, so I couldn't read his lips. But I guessed that it was something about the dark car, the Impala.

Cheryl must've thought so, too, because she went and handed over the keys. The deputy nodded his thanks.

Then she, Betty, Kevin, and I followed the sheriff outside. He led us to a squad car and we got in. The Kellers sat in the front and I was again in the backseat with Betty, but this time Cheryl sat between us. I wished Betty and I could talk alone, but that would probably have to wait until Monday, at the next _Blue and Gold_ staff meeting.

Sheriff Keller dropped Betty off first. I wondered how she would explain to her mother why she was coming back from the drive-in so early, but it was probably the least of her concerns just then.

"See you Monday," she said as she got out.

"See ya," Kevin and I said.

I thought I heard Cheryl whisper, "If not sooner," but I couldn't be sure, since she was sliding away from me as fast as she could, like I was contagious or subhuman. Not that I minded. I wasn't the girl-hater Betty called me when I was nine. (And I was never a misogynist, I just didn't trust or understand girls other than her and Jellybean.) I still didn't trust or understand Cheryl.

"You still work at the drive-in, Jughead?"

"For the moment."

"Oh, yeah. It's a damn shame about the Twilight. Back when I was in high school, it was the place to be on a Saturday night. Me and my buddies and our girlfriends." He coughed, maybe thinking of how his son's best buddies were girls and Kevin would never have a girlfriend who wasn't a girl who was just a friend. "Well, it was a long time ago," he added gruffly.

He dropped me and Cheryl off at the drive-in. I assumed that he wanted to grill his son in private, probably at home.

I waved goodbye then turned and was surprised to see Cheryl still standing there. Her arms weren't crossed, and her hands weren't on her hips. She was still tottering on those ridiculous heels, but her posture was far from its usual arrogance.

"It was my grandmother's car," she said quietly.

"What?? Why didn't you tell Sheriff Keller?"

"I promised Nancy I wouldn't."

"Chuck's girlfriend?"

She rolled her eyes. "Nancy Drew."

Oh, she meant Betty. "Wait, does that make me Joe or Frank Hardy?"

She crossed her arms. "Well, you're definitely not Ned Nickerson the arm-candy. I was thinking more Encyclopedia Brown."

"Thanks. So what was Jason's jacket doing in your grandmother's car? And why did the car suddenly show up again two months after he 'drowned'?" I waited for her to admit that the drowning was a lie. And then I might share some of what I had in my "Jolly" doc.

"You can ask my grandmother at brunch tomorrow."

"What??" I said again. "I can't go to Thornhill now!" Not right after Jason's jacket had turned up in their grandmother's abandoned car. Their parents would be too suspicious.

"Of course not. Forsythe P. Jones III, you are cordially invited to join me and my grandmother at L'établissement Chic tomorrow at 10 a.m. for our monthly brunch. And wear a tie."

"Um, thank you?"

She nodded and strode away, presumably back to her car and Veronica.

I really wanted to call or at least text Betty, but I decided it could wait until the morning. She didn't have to go home so early, but I figured she was emotionally drained.

I was weary myself, but I sighed and headed towards the projection booth.


	11. Female Trouble

I could tell from the screen that the DVD was still playing OK. I'd been gone about an hour, so there was still most of the movie left.

I didn't pay much attention to the cars I passed. I felt more self-conscious when the people inside could see me more easily than I could see them. It was a relief to reach the booth, even though I'd have to face Archie.

It was possible he'd gotten tired of waiting and either rejoined Veronica in Cheryl's car, or headed home. But he was looking out the window when I came in.

"The best view at the drive-in."

He turned to face me. "Do you watch the audience?"

"Yeah, sometimes," I admitted. I added, "I saw your dad's truck." I didn't know if Archie knew about Mrs. Lodge but I figured there was a good chance he'd seen them together.

"Yeah, he said he'd be taking Mrs. Lodge tonight."

"You knew about it?"

"Yeah, they used to come here in high school and she works for him now."

I didn't know which I was more surprised by, but I decided to focus on the second half. "She works for him?"

"Yeah, she's his accountant."

"Isn't her husband imprisoned for real estate fraud?"

"That's not her fault."

"Well, no, but— and what's she doing going on a date with your dad when she's got a husband?" Archie's parents were at least legally separated.

"I don't think it's a date. But then I thought the girls and I were all just here as friends." He frowned.

I felt guilty that I hadn't warned him, although he would've had to find out Betty's feelings eventually. "What did you say to Betty?"

"What did she tell you?"

"Nothing, we were kind of distracted."

"Oh, right, Jason." He paused and I wasn't sure if he wanted me to tell him about that, although he'd seemed bored by the topic so far. Then he said, "I thought we were just going to the snack bar but then she asked if we could talk. I said sure, because she's one of my best friends. And then she told me she likes me as more than a friend."

"And how did you feel about that?"

"I was mostly surprised. I've known her since we were little kids. It would be like suddenly falling for you."

"Hey, you could do worse."

He chuckled. "A lot worse." Then he frowned. "I don't have to tell you how great Betty is. I love her, like a sister."

I had to tread carefully. I couldn't say that I'd known Betty as long as he had, been friends with her just as long, but I'd still fallen for her recently, when I never thought I'd fall for anyone. I quietly said, "That must've been rough for you."

"Yeah, I care about Betty. And I didn't want to hurt her."

"What did you say?"

"That she was too perfect."

"Oh, Archie!" I groaned. Even I, as little as I understood girls, knew that was the wrong thing to say, although I had no idea what the right thing would've been.

"She caught me off guard," he said defensively. "But it's true. I'm an average student and she gets almost straight A's. She has direction in her life and I don't know what I'm doing."

I couldn't help thinking she was too good for me, too, especially considering our home lives. But that didn't make me love her any less. It just made me want to keep it to myself.

Then Archie said, "Betty ran off and I didn't know whether to chase after her or give her some space."

"I'm guessing she wants her space. At least tonight."

"Yeah."

"And what about the girl you didn't grow up with? The glamorous socialite from the big city?"

"Veronica? She's gorgeous, but nothing's going to happen there."

"Out of your league?"

"Something like that." He looked out the window again, perhaps at Veronica. Then he turned away and said, "Enough about me and my girl trouble. What about you?"

"Me?" I said nervously. I definitely didn't want to talk about my own girl trouble.

He looked around the room. "How long have you lived here?"

That was easier to talk about, though still hard. "About a year."

"Your dad?"

"Yeah, he's gotten worse, or maybe I was waiting until I had someplace else to go."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I'm a loner."

"You're my brother."

He said it so earnestly, I couldn't mock him. "What about your dad?"

"I'll talk to him. Sleep over tonight and I'll talk to him in the morning."

"Thanks, but I'm not quite ready to abandon the Twilight yet."

"My dad's going to start tearing it down a week from Monday."

I nodded. "I'll be out before then. And thank you."

"Of course." He yawned. "I think I'm gonna head home."

"You don't want to stay for the rest of the movie?"

"I know how it ends."

After he left, I thought of how I didn't know how any of this would end. Would his dad let me move in? Did I want to live next door to Betty, with her crush as my roommate?

I sighed and watched some of the movie, until it was time for another intermission.


	12. The French Connection

I owned only one tie, a hand-me-down from my dad, who probably hadn't worn it since high school. I took Cheryl literally and decided not to go back to the trailer and get a jacket, slacks, and collared shirt to go with the tie. It was partly that I didn't want to make that much effort for Cheryl and her grandmother, and partly that I didn't want to talk to my dad until I knew whether I'd be moving in with the Andrewses. I didn't know if he'd suggest I move back home or if he thought I was better off without him. I didn't know what I wanted him to say.

L'établissement Chic was the fanciest French restaurant in town, because in Riverdale even the fanciest French restaurant was going to be named very literally. I wasn't sure what I could afford to order, especially now that I was unemployed. Maybe tap water and a side dish.

When I got there, the maître d' glanced at my sneakers, jeans, and _Night of the Living Dead_ t-shirt. But he just asked, "Do you have a reservation?"

"I'm with the Blossom party," I said, because that's what someone would've said in a movie.

He nodded and gestured that I should follow. He led me to the table where the Blossoms were sitting. Cheryl shook her head, presumably at my outfit, but her grandmother exclaimed, "Forsythe! I knew you couldn't pass up a free meal."

I felt both embarrassed and relieved. I suppose I could've insisted on paying for my own food, but it wasn't like I'd chosen this venue.

I sat down and said, "Thank you, Ma'am," since I figured that that was what Betty would've said.

Nana Blossom chuckled and exclaimed, "Such a charmer! No wonder you're so popular."

She didn't say it sarcastically, like Cheryl would've. I was about to say she must've been mixing me up with someone else, when I looked out the window and got distracted. Reggie and Chuck were passing by and laughing. I couldn't tell if they'd seen me and I tried not to be paranoid about it.

They were almost out of sight when I heard someone say, "Sorry I'm late."

I turned and saw Betty looking like she was dressed for church on Easter. I'd thought about texting her before I left, to at least let her know about my surprise invitation. But I decided to fill her in after the brunch. It hadn't occurred to me that Cheryl had invited her, too, but it made sense considering that I'd thought Cheryl had murmured, "If not sooner," in the squad car. If it had crossed my mind, I would've guessed that Betty would've had said no, since it was unlikely that Betty's mother would've let her get out of going to church. (Mrs. Cooper wasn't especially religious, but she did believe in keeping up appearances.)

I smiled at Betty, not just glad as always to see her but relieved that I wouldn't have to get through this awkward meal without support.

"It's quite all right, Alice Dear," Mrs. Blossom said as Betty seated herself. (Should I have pulled out Betty's chair? It wasn't like we were on a date or even on our own. But it was a fancy restaurant.)

"Nana, this is Alice's daughter," Cheryl said a little loudly, as if her grandmother's impairment was related to hearing.

"Oh, yes, of course. But where's Jason?"

Betty and I looked at each other. Did Mrs. Blossom think Betty was Polly? If so, did she think Jason was alive and living with Polly?

"Are you ready to order?" the waiter asked.

I was about to ask for menus for myself and Betty, when Mrs. Blossom said, "Oui, merci, Pierre," and then proceeded to order for the whole table, in French.

I didn't know half of what she said, but I'm not exactly finicky. Even snails and frogs' legs would've been fine. It turned out to be pear pancakes and the very Seussian green-eggs-and-ham crêpes, all of which were delicious.

We dropped the subject of Jason until Betty swallowed her first bite of flaugnarde, patted her face with a napkin, and sweetly said, "Thank you for the car, Nana Rose."

I drew my breath in sharply, but the old woman didn't seem to notice. She smiled and said, "Is it running all right?"

"Yes, thank you. It got us where we needed to go."

Mrs. Blossom chuckled. "Good. And I knew it was the only way you could get there." She frowned. "But why did you come back?"

"Unfinished business," Betty whispered.

Cheryl's grandmother nodded sagely. "Then he would have to stay behind."

"Exactly."

I stared at Betty in disbelief. I'd seen her in school plays and I knew she was a good actress, but she'd always had a script to memorize. I didn't know she could improvise like this and convince an admittedly delusional old lady.

Cheryl, on the other hand, looked bored, like she wanted to get out her phone. I couldn't believe she was that indifferent. She was the grieving sister, wasn't she? She knew that the car was now in the custody of the police, along with Jason's jacket and whatever other clues it contained. Did she believe Jason was still alive or was the abandoned car proof that something had happened to him?

And what would their grandmother do once she found out about the abandoned car? I doubted the area of the karaoke bar had been Jason and Polly's destination, if they had indeed traveled together, as Mrs. Blossom seemed to think. There was nothing else out there, and even if Jolly desperately wanted to have a karaoke date, they could've taken the bus, like Moovin. Not to mention that Jason and Polly never came back from their destination.

Did Mrs. Blossom not know about the "drowning," or did she just not believe it? Were she and Cheryl in on a scheme involving Jason or did they have separate and overlapping schemes?

And did Betty know more about Polly's disappearance than she'd told even me? She was the last person I would distrust, but that didn't mean she didn't have schemes of her own.

Mrs. Blossom suddenly whispered, "We probably shouldn't discuss this further. I think Pierre is a spy."

I almost said, "Aren't the French our allies in the war?" But I decided to keep out of it.

She did most of the talking during the rest of the meal, even when it supposedly was about us. Like, Betty heard that she was the star reporter on _The Blue and Gold._ And Mrs. Blossom informed me that I was going to have to choose between music and football someday, despite my talent for both.

At other moments, she seemed to think Betty and I were a couple. I couldn't meet Betty's eyes, although I wanted to tell her to not worry about it, Mrs. Blossom was just crazy.

When she talked to Cheryl, it was family matters, but nothing to do with Jason. She seemed to have an elaborate family tree in her head, and she kept all the branches straight, as far as I could tell.

Cheryl nodded, said little, and looked slightly less bored. But when her grandmother said, "Of course, after what happened with my father-in-law, your great-grandfather, that changed everything," Cheryl cleared her throat and snapped her fingers for the check. She paid it as if she'd always intended to, and her grandmother didn't look surprised.

"Thanks, Cheryl," Betty said.

"Yeah, thanks," I said as the two of us stood up.

Cheryl shrugged. "Maybe I want you two in my debt."

I laughed nervously. Betty leaned down and gave Nana Blossom a gentle hug.

"Take care, Dear. And, Forsythe?" She let go of Betty and looked at me with suddenly piercing eyes.

"Yes, Ma'am?"

"Stay out of trouble."


	13. The Accused

"How did you get out of church?" It was the first thing either of us had said after leaving the restaurant. In my case, I had so much I wanted to tell and to ask, I didn't know where to start. Finally, I went with the most immediate question.

"I said I had an interview for the school paper and this was the only time the person could see me."

It wasn't a lie I supposed, although it wasn't the whole truth. "Didn't she ask who the person was?"

"I said it was a respected elder in the community."

I snorted. "Yeah."

"Hey, Juggy, I meant to say something last night, but there was too much going on."

"Yeah, it was a crazy night." If she brought up my stroking her hair, I planned to blame Kevin.

"Yeah, but this is something you should've told me months ago."

Oh, crap, she knew about my crush! I wasn't ready to talk about it, but she was. "Well, it's not easy to talk about."

"But we're best friends."

"Yeah, but I didn't want to ruin our friendship."

"Do you think I'm the kind of person who judges people by where they live? That's a little insulting."

"No, no, nothing like that." Good, she didn't know my other secret yet. "I guess I was just embarrassed."

"Why? It's sort of cool."

"It is?"

"Well, yeah, you have a place of your own, surrounded by movies."

"It was cool. But now it's over."

"Will you move back to the trailer?"

"I don't think so. Um, Archie has asked me to move in, if it's OK with his dad."

She smiled. "We'd be neighbors."

"Yeah."

"Is that why you're walking me home? So you can find out what Mr. Andrews says?"

I was doing it to be chivalrous, but I said, "That's right. And because you and I have a lot to talk about."

She frowned. "You mean about Archie?"

"If you want, but I meant about Jason. And Polly."

She sighed. "There's not that much to say about Archie. He doesn't feel the way I do."

"Are you sorry you said anything?"

"No, it's better to know. It hurts right now, but I'll get over it."

"Yeah," I said quietly.

"As far as Jason and Polly goes, I think Cheryl helped him run away, giving him a cover story, but I don't know if she knew about Polly."

"But Nana Blossom knew."

"Yeah, she knew about his crush years ago, and she loaned them her car so that they could run away together."

"So how did the car end up outside of town?"

"I don't know, and I doubt she does either."

"That was pretty impressive how you pretended to be Polly."

She blushed. "Thanks, but I felt guilty about it, taking advantage of her condition."

"It's in a good cause. Truth and justice and all that."

She smiled a little. "I guess. Anyway, whether or not they got to their destination, it seems weird that Jason took his jacket from home but left it in the car."

"I wonder if Sheriff Keller found any more clues in the car." I sort of wished we had investigated the Impala while we had the chance, but it'd been so dark at night in the woods. Besides, maybe that would've counted as tampering with the evidence.

"Do you think we should tell him what we know?"

"We don't know anything, not for sure."

She nodded. "It's still just theories. But should we share our clues?"

"I thought you wanted to crack this case for _The Blue and Gold_."

She laughed. "Well, yeah, I am the star reporter."

"What does that make me?"

"Bernstein to my Woodward," she teased, and I remembered that she was one of the few who had bothered to come to the Twilight when Miss Grundy offered extra credit in freshman American History for writing a review of _All the President's Men_.

"So who's our Nixon?" I asked. "Mayor McCoy?"

"I hope not. I like Josie's mother and she seems honest."

"You realize we don't know who the suspects are or even if an actual crime has been committed."

"It is an unusual mystery."

"I still want to solve it, or at least try."

"Me, too."

We smiled at each other and I was glad that we were on the case together. At least until we, or Sheriff Keller, solved it.

We looked away but kept smiling the rest of the walk, until her mother stormed out of their house and cried, "Betty Cooper, how dare you lie to me? And to go out with this hooligan!"

"He's not a hooligan. And we didn't go out."

"Then why are you dressed up?" I wanted to say that Betty wasn't exactly dressed for clubbing, but then her mother looked at me, or rather my tie, and asked, "Is that paisley?"

"Yeah, it was my dad's. And maybe my grandpa's." It looked like it might be fifty years old.

She stared at me, apparently aghast at my fashion crimes.

Someone cleared his throat and said, "Jughead, can I talk to you?"

I looked over at the porch next door and saw Archie's dad. "Yeah, sure, Mr. Andrews." I felt bad leaving Betty to deal with her mother, but there probably wasn't anything I could say to make it better. As I walked next door and onto the porch, I wondered if Archie had heard Mrs. Cooper's accusations. It would be awkward to explain why I'd gone to a fancy restaurant with Betty the morning after he rejected her.

His dad held the screen door open for me and then led me to the kitchen.

"You want me to fix you anything?" Mr. Andrews offered.

"Thanks, but I had bru— breakfast."

"With Betty?"

"Yeah, but it wasn't a date." I wasn't sure if I should explain that we were there at Cheryl's invitation.

He chuckled. "I kinda figured." Then he sighed and gestured that I should sit down.

I sat but he didn't. "Where's Archie?" I asked.

"Football practice."

"On a Sunday morning?"

"Not official practice. Just Reggie, Moose, and some of the other guys getting together before the captain tryouts."

Reggie and Chuck hadn't been dressed to play football, but maybe they were going to suit up when they got to the field. It felt weird that Archie was going to practice with his rival, but this was a small town. I wondered if Moose would really be there, or if he'd be called into the police station, despite Kevin's promise to keep him out of it. Moose's fingerprints were on the jacket, but so were mine, Betty's, Cheryl's, Kevin's, and who knew who else's.

"Archie talked to me about your living situation."

"Oh." I wasn't sure what else to say, particularly since he looked so serious.

"And I gotta be honest, I wasn't sure about this. And then I got a phone call."

That threw me. "From who?"

"Your dad. Jughead, he's in jail."

My initial reaction wasn't surprise. It seemed inevitable that my father would get arrested eventually. It was just a question of whether it was vandalism, or drunk and disorderly conduct, or something else. "For what?"

Now Mr. Andrews sat down, across the kitchen table.

"Grand theft auto and kidnapping."

Now I was surprised, no, stunned. It was possible that the timing was coincidental and it was some other car and person my dad had taken, but that wasn't a comforting thought.

"A car belonging to Jason Blossom's grandmother turned up with his letterman jacket inside. Sheriff Keller checked the fingerprints and they all belonged to Jason's family or classmates, except one set."

"My dad's." It wasn't a question. I was more surprised that they knew that it was Nana Blossom's car. Had Cheryl told the police after all, or did they just check the license and registration? Or maybe since Sheriff Keller grew up in Riverdale, he would've recognized the car without having to look it up.

"Yeah."

"But what about the drowning?" I asked.

"I don't know. That's for Sheriff Keller to figure out."

I could've told him that Betty and I were on the case, but I had the feeling he wouldn't approve. Instead I said, "My dad called you? You were his one phone call?"

"He asked me to look after you."

"When can I see him?"

"Not yet."

"I'm his son! And I'm not a little kid." I could understand if they wouldn't let Jellybean visit him. I wondered if she and our mom knew. I didn't want to be the one to tell them, but I would if I had to.

"I know, but that's part of me looking after you."

"Did he forbid it or are you?"

"Neither. I just don't think you should go rushing over to the jail."

"When can I see him?" I repeated.

"Let's wait a few days and see what happens."

I decided not to argue. I knew he meant well. And to be honest, although I of course wanted to see my dad because he was my dad, I also wanted to solve this mystery and I had no idea yet who the other suspects were. I was pretty sure he was the red herring suspect, if for no other reason than I couldn't see him taking anyone or anything and not getting some benefit out of it.

"Thanks for letting me stay here," I said, although Archie's dad hadn't directly promised that.

"Of course," he said, although he'd admitted to doubts earlier. "When do you want to move in? Maybe tonight? Before supper?"

I almost said, "Let's wait a few days and see what happens," but that would be ungrateful. Instead, I said, "How about before breakfast tomorrow?"

He nodded. "Sounds good."


	14. Back to School

The next morning, Archie greeted me not with sympathy about my dad and not with a "Welcome, Roomie." Instead, he teased, "How was your date with Betty?"

"Terrific! How was football practice?"

His ears reddened and he whispered, "I'll tell you later."

His dad couldn't have heard him, since Mr. Andrews was downstairs making breakfast. But I was fine with waiting to talk. Archie finished getting dressed and I quickly unpacked my few belongings. I'd learned to travel light years ago.

Over breakfast, he, his dad, and I just talked about school. We didn't even discuss work, because Archie was unemployed, I was recently let go, and Mr. Andrews's big job coming up was destroying my recent workplace.

When we left his house, Archie glanced at the house next door.

"Do you guys walk to school together?" I asked, remembering them mentioning it in the past, although not lately.

"Not this year. Even before...Saturday night. Her mom has been extra protective since Polly disappeared."

I nodded. I glanced up at Betty's bedroom window but the curtains were closed.

"We should go," Archie said.

I nodded again and then followed him, as a good sidekick would.

"I wasn't at football practice yesterday morning," he said on the next block, as if he'd been waiting to get out of his dad's earshot.

"Yeah, I wondered. Was it music practice again?"

He blushed a little, and I had the feeling it wasn't because he'd lied to his dad. "Valerie is amazing!"

I stopped myself from saying, "Here we go again!" Archie was as girl-crazy as ever. I knew he wasn't obligated to stay single for Betty's sake, but I wished he'd waited awhile before rushing into his next crush, or at least telling me about it.

I played dumb, since I wasn't supposed to know anything about girls, not that I did know much. "Really talented, huh?"

He sighed happily. "And smart and sweet and beautiful."

I wanted to say that Betty was all of that. Well, not musically talented, although she had a nice singing voice. But talented in other ways. However, I knew it wasn't a competition. Valerie was a good person, but even if Archie had fallen for Cheryl, I would have to accept it if someone made him happy.

"So is it pretty serious?" I asked as if I didn't feel bad for Betty.

"Well, I'm just getting started, but I really love it."

I winced. "Dude, way too much information."

He looked confused for a moment and then he snorted. "For an asexual, you have a dirty mind."

I decided not to debate that. "So the music's going well?"

"Yeah, in fact, she s going to ask Josie if I can sit in with them at the dance on Saturday."

So that meant Archie probably wouldn't be taking a date to the dance, which would make things a little easier on Betty. Of course, if Valerchie wasn't a thing yet, it sounded like it might be someday, hopefully after Betty had had more time to heal.

"You'll look cute in Pussycat ears," I teased.

Before he could reply, I heard Betty pant, "Guys, wait up!"

I was surprised she wanted to walk to school with us, especially Archie. But we both waited for her.

She breathlessly exclaimed, "Jughead, why didn't you tell me about your dad?"

It wasn't that I hadn't thought about texting or even calling her after I found out. If nothing else, it was a surprising development in the case. But I again hadn't wanted her pity. Not that I thought I could keep the secret from her. Obviously, word of my dad's arrest would get out soon, but I'd sort of planned to tell her at lunchtime, especially if we could meet in _The Blue and Gold_ office.

Archie glanced at me, but he asked Betty, "What happened to Mr. Jones?"

"You didn't tell him?" she asked me.

I almost said that I thought Archie's dad told him, but I realized that that was unlikely. "I didn't tell anyone." I looked at Archie, since Betty already knew. "My dad's been arrested for kidnapping Jason Blossom." That seemed more important than the car theft, at least at that moment.

He stared at me. "He's got Jason?"

"Well, no, I mean, it's complicated."

"The police found Jason's grandmother's car with Jason's letterman jacket, and Mr. Jones's fingerprints."

Archie looked at Betty again. "How do you know?"

"My mom told me," she said quickly.

I registered that she wasn't going to tell him our part in the discovery of the car and jacket. And then what she said fully hit me. "Your mom knows?"

She looked at me apologetically. "The Blossoms told Sheriff Keller that he could release the information to the press."

I was trying to piece a timeline together. When was my dad arrested? Obviously sometime after Sheriff Keller dropped me and Cheryl off at the drive-in, at least an hour later, since the sheriff would've had to drive his son home and maybe talk to him in private. Clearly it was before Mr. Andrews told me. When had my dad called Archie's dad? That I could narrow down more. Probably after Archie left for "football practice," and again before I got there.

When did the Blossoms find out? I was positive Jason's grandmother hadn't had a clue during brunch. But what about his sister? I decided that even Cheryl couldn't have sat through the meal knowing about the arrest without giving that knowledge away. In fact, she probably would've made little remarks that Betty and I wouldn't have understood until later. Her parents might've known by then, but they wouldn't have told her just yet. But they must've by the time they gave Sheriff Keller permission to contact the press.

My best friends were looking at me, waiting for me to say something. So I said, "Your mom must be p.o.ed that she found out too late for the Sunday edition." _The Riverdale Register_ was published twice a week, so now the Coopers would have to wait until Wednesday.

"They're going to run it in the online edition today."

"Oh." That came out daily at noon, which meant Mrs. Cooper didn't know until sometime after noon on Sunday, which made sense, because she definitely would've brought it up when she saw me at elevenish. And it meant that by lunchtime, everyone at school would know, or at least could know.

"We should have a newspaper meeting today," Betty said.

"Do you want to interview the son of a criminal?"

She shook her head. "Of course your dad is innocent. But we can talk about it over lunch."

"Thanks. Um, we should get going or we'll be late."

She nodded and we all started walking. We awkwardly small talked. One of my thousand thoughts was that this was probably the first time they'd talked since he tried to talk to her in my projection booth.

When we got a block from school, a limo honked and then Veronica got out of the backseat. "Hey, B!"

"Hey, V."

"Gentlemen, may I borrow your neighbor for some girl talk?"

"She's all yours," Archie said, before I could say that we didn't own Betty. I was also wondering how Veronica knew I was staying at Archie's, but I supposed Betty had texted her about it, since I'd told Betty about Archie's offer.

"Thanks, Archikins," she said and took Betty's arm, leading her away, while we trailed behind.

I wanted to say, "I thought she wasn't going to call you that anymore," but instead I said, "I'm sorry I didn't tell you right away, but I guess I thought your dad told you, or would."

"It's OK, but I do want to talk to you about this."

"Pop's after school?"

"I've got football practice," he said and I wasn't sure if he meant it or if he didn't want Betty to hear over Veronica's whispers and be jealous of Valerie.

"Well, I know where you live."

His chuckle was more subdued than usual.


	15. The Post

"How dare you?" Cheryl spat at me when I went to my locker at lunchtime before meeting with Betty. I wasn't sure what specifically Cheryl was mad about, but I felt some kind of sins-of-the-fathers guilt because the police suspected my father of taking her brother. Before I could reply, she whispered, "How could you sit there, pretending to be your father, knowing that he took her car?"

That was a lot to unpack, including that she seemed more upset about the Impala than Jason. I slammed my locker door shut. "First of all, if my dad did steal a car, it would've been sold out of state weeks ago. And secondly, I can't help it that your grandma can't keep her Forsythes straight. I just figured she dated my grandpa back in high school."

I was just messing with her, but she flinched and didn't have an immediate comeback for once. I turned away to fasten my lock, rooting for her to get her snark together.

"Well, well, opposites attract."

I turned to see Reggie elbowing Moose, who was trying not to laugh. I could understand, the idea of me and Cheryl as a couple was ridiculous, but it annoyed me that Moose was being dudebro with Reggie about it. I could've outed him with just a few words about what attracted him, hell, with just the one seemingly innocuous word "karaoke," but I resisted.

"Forsythe is the opposite of what attracts me."

Both Reggie and Moose guffawed, and again I couldn't blame them. I muttered, "I've gotta go," and scurried down the hallway with just my laptop in its case.

When I got to the _Blue and Gold_ office, Betty was sitting at the table, partly turned away, looking down and writing, another pen stuck in the messy bun she'd changed her usual neat ponytail into. I made an inarticulate sound that caused her to turn her head towards the door and I felt like I had little red hearts swooping like bats around my head.

"Oh, hey, Jug."

"Hey. Um, you changed your hair."

"Yeah, Veronica was trying out different styles I could wear to the dance on Saturday."

"You're going?"

She shrugged. "Veronica thinks I should, even though I can't go with Archie. But never mind that. Let's talk about your dad."

"I doubt he's going to the dance."

"Jughead."

I nodded and shut the door behind me. I wanted to tell her her hair looked cute, which probably would've been a harmless compliment, but I wasn't supposed to care about things like that and she'd already moved on.

I sat across from her and pulled out my laptop. Not looking at her, I asked, "Has your mom posted the story yet?"

"Yeah, a few minutes ago. I don't think anyone at school has seen it yet because it's not a site most of them visit."

I set the laptop on the table and fired it up as I said, "Yeah, no one our age cares about newspapers. Well, except the _Blue and Gold_ of course."

I was teasing, but her response was serious. "That's mostly to see their names and their friends' names."

I looked at her as I said, "Shouldn't we publishing our 'Back to School' issue soon? It's the second week."

She blinked in surprise. "I've been posting online. Haven't you been reading it?"

Anybody else, I would've known they were messing with me, but this was honest, sincere Betty Cooper. "You've been single-handedly publishing the online edition for a week?" I knew no one else was on the school paper. In our freshman year, there'd been a couple seniors, but they'd graduated of course, and Betty became editor by default. Miss Grundy was the faculty advisor, but I assumed she trusted Betty's judgment and would only step in if there was a problem.

"It's OK, I knew you had a lot to deal with. I mean with losing your job. I didn't know about the other stuff yet."

"Yeah," I said quietly, thinking of how I wouldn't burden her with the infatuation I was dealing with.

"Her article doesn't mention Kevin and Moose by name, just 'two local residents.' I don't know if it's because they're minors or if Sheriff Keller is protecting his son."

I hesitated and then I told her about what'd happened in the hallway a few minutes before. Not that Moose had played that big a role in it, but he was there. I ended up telling her that Reggie and Chuck might've seen me at the restaurant with Cheryl before Betty got there. "...Of course, the gossip will get really interesting when everyone finds out that Cheryl's boyfriend's dad kidnapped and maybe killed her brother."

She didn't laugh, but she was less of a whistling-in-the-graveyard kind of person than I was. She asked, "Why did she mention the car and not Jason?"

"Because it turned up and he didn't?" I guessed.

"And maybe she didn't expect him to turn up."

"So does she think he's dead or alive? Or maybe she knows for a fact what happened to him."

"I don't know. And why did she react like that to your joke about your grandfather dating her grandmother?"

"Maybe something happened between them. Or maybe just the thought of filthy Jones hands touching a pure Blossom rendered Cheryl speechless."

"Nana Rose wasn't a Blossom yet."

I thought of a deflowering joke but resisted. Instead, I said, "So you think my dad's innocent? Of grand theft auto, kidnapping, and murder I mean."

"No one's accusing him of murder, not even my mom."

I pretended to wipe beads of sweat from my brow with the back of my hand. "Chee, that's a load off my mind!"

"Jughead."

"What were his fingerprints doing all over the car and the jacket?" I asked, wanting her to defend him, despite my own doubts.

"He could've found the car before Kevin and Moose did but decided not to report it to the police."

That sort of made sense. My dad wasn't the type to see something, say something. But he was too smart to carelessly leave his prints behind. "What if," I started and then stopped. She waited patiently, so I went on, "What if he meant to be caught?"

"Two months later?"

I sighed. "I don't know. None of this makes any sense."

"We've got time to figure it out, Juggy." She reached into her backpack and brought out a couple vintage lunchboxes, with Saturday morning cartoon characters that I'd seen on MeTube, my dad had watched on cable, and my grandfather had probably watched in first run, although maybe as an adult.

"What's this?"

"Lunch of course."

I had never loved her more than I did in that moment, but I just said thanks, opened the Scooby Doo lunchbox, and started stuffing my face with her home cooking.


	16. The Shape of Water

If anyone else at school knew about my dad's arrest, I didn't hear about it. And it seemed like the sort of thing I would hear about. I didn't notice anyone even giving me funny looks or whispering. I think if it had been about anyone else's families, Cheryl would've happily spread gossip, but she wasn't even playing the victim's sister card anymore. I really couldn't figure her out.

I knew it was only a matter of time before everyone knew. If my classmates didn't read _The Riverdale Register_ online, their parents would, or the print edition on Wednesday. It was hard to focus in class with this hanging over me, but I did my best.

It was a relief to go home, well, to Archie's. The day before, I'd felt a combination of not wanting to talk to anyone because my dad was in jail, and wanting to spend one last day and night at the Twilight. But it felt spooky to be alone at the drive-in, and not in a cool way like before. I kept thinking about how rootless I was. The Andrews home was just as broken as mine, his mom as absent as mine, but it never felt that way because his dad was so solid and reliable.

Even with nobody else home after school, it felt comforting and familiar. The furniture, the snacks in the kitchen, the television in the living room. I channel-surfed while I ate, still unable to focus much. Then I sighed, turned off the set, and did the dishes, including the ones from breakfast. I wanted to be a good guest, no matter how long I was staying.

Then I went upstairs to Archie's room to do some homework. I couldn't help noticing that Betty's window that faced his had the curtains closed. It must've been so weird for her to have her crush in sight but out of reach all these years. And now things were awkward between them because of the rejection. They'd managed to interact when I was with them to and at school, but of course the stuff with my dad overshadowed everything, perhaps a welcome distraction for them and even me.

I wondered if she was home. I texted her, rather than try to throw something at her window. She replied that she was "window-shopping with V."

**For the dance?**

**Maybe. Talk to you tomorrow.**

I felt dismissed, although it was probably hard to text while she was trying clothes on or giving Veronica feedback on outfits or whatever. I reminded myself that Betty had lost Polly and it was good for her to have a female friend, even if I wasn't crazy about Veronica.

I'd never really needed any friends beside Betty and Archie. But I knew that they needed other people. Usually that didn't bother me, but I felt needier lately, even though I pushed them away. I reminded myself that my situation with my dad wasn't trivial and that Archie and Betty were there for me, even if they weren't around every moment.

I was able to study some and start on an essay for Grundy by the time Archie came home.

"Hey, Roomie. How was football practice?"

"All right. Reggie's gonna be tough to beat."

"Do you want to?"

"I feel like I should try."

"What about music?"

"Valerie says it will be waiting for me when football season is over and we can still get together now and then in the meantime."

"Oh." Josie would've told him he didn't take music seriously enough if he didn't put it first, but Valerie had more of a well-rounded attitude. I thought of my mom, before she left, telling me to get out there and live life so I'd have something to write about, although I don't think unrequited love and an imprisoned father were what she had in mind.

"Anyway, that isn't what I wanted to talk to you about. I should've told you this two months ago but I couldn't."

I had no idea where he was going with this but I was definitely intrigued. "What happened two months ago?"

"It was over the 4th of July weekend."

"Um, we spent every waking moment together that weekend."

"Yeah, but you slept in."

Archie had always been more of a morning person than I was. I'd get up early when I had to out of necessity, like the times I showered at school before everyone got there, but my default was to stay up late and get up around noon. "You told me you went for your morning jogs in Greendale. And you'd bring back coffee and donuts from Dunky's."

"Yeah, but one morning, on the 4th, I saw someone."

"A cute girl?" It seemed like he would've told me about her at the time, unless there was some reason for keeping her secret.

"No, nothing like that. I, I saw Jason Blossom."

I stared and then I blinked. "The morning he's supposed to have drowned?"

"I guess. I mean, you probably know the timeline better than I do, but yeah, that day."

"Are you sure it was him? I mean, all you gingers look alike."

He ignored my lame joke and said, "It was him. I saw him come out of the woods in wet clothes."

There were woods on both sides of the Sweetwater River. The Riverdale forest went all the way over to the edge of the drive-in, where Kevin drove the Impala. The forest on the Greendale side was smaller but thick enough to separate the river from the town. "Do you think he swam across the river?" I asked.

"Maybe. I mean, he wasn't soaking wet, just I don't know, moist."

"Moist?"

"Less wet than damp."

"Oh. So what was he doing when you saw him? I mean, was he trying to hide from sight?"

"No, he was looking for something, but not something little like keys or a phone. He was scanning the area, with his hand shading his eyes from the morning sun. Then he saw me and waved me over."

I hadn't been expecting that. "He wanted to talk to you?"

"Yeah, when I crossed the road, he asked if I'd seen a black 1960 Impala."

"His grandmother's car."

He nodded. "I told him I hadn't, not in years I mean. Then he sighed and said he'd have to take the bus."

"That's a pretty casual reaction to losing a car, even for a rich kid."

"I guess, but at the time l thought he was meeting her in Greendale."

"You said his clothes were wet, moist. Do you remember if he was wearing his letterman jacket? Or maybe carrying it, since it was July."

"No, he had on shorts and a T-shirt. Flip-flops."

If he had swum ashore, he'd want to wear as little as possible, but enough to not draw attention in town. Maybe he'd been on land long enough for his clothes to mostly dry out in the summer morning sunshine.

Archie continued, "Betty said his jacket was in the car."

"That's right."

"So maybe his jacket and other belongings were put in the car ahead of time, so he could travel light when he crossed the river."

"Good theory." It felt weird but nice to finally discuss the case with Archie, after a week of talking to even Cheryl about it more.

"Thanks. I'm sorry I didn't say something before, but Jason asked me not to."

"How did he say it? Like he was fleeing for his life? Or like he was running away?"

"More like he was having a naughty weekend."

"What now?"

"He said, 'If anybody asks, you didn't see me. This weekend is on the down low.' And then he winked."

"You're kidding!"

Archie shrugged. "I told him sure, and I didn't ask for any details."

"You are the least gossipy person in town."

"I just respected his privacy. And I figured no one would ask me, which they didn't."

"Because Cheryl told everyone he drowned!"

"Yeah, that was a shock to come home to. I mean, why fake your death just to sneak off with someone for a few days?"

"So you knew he was meeting someone? I mean not his grandmother."

"Not at first, but yeah, after he said 'the down low.' And then when Betty said Polly was missing, well, I remembered."

"Remembered what?"

"When we went to Thornhill for Cheryl's twelfth birthday."

I didn't tell him I'd been thinking about that night recently. "She kissed you."

His ears reddened. "Yeah, a few times. I liked it, even though I didn't have a crush on her or anything. I mean, she was pretty, still is, but I don't like her personality."

I tried not to laugh. "And she was older, a woman of the world."

"Yeah. Anyway, Jason and Polly got paired up in that game."

I waited for him to mention the other couple who got seven minutes in Heaven, but he didn't. So I said, "He had a crush on her. Before they kissed, I mean."

"Wait, how would you know that?"

It was a fair question. At eleven, I would've been oblivious to the signs of infatuation, only picking up on Betty's because I knew her so well and spent so much time around her and Archie. And it wasn't like Jason ever would've confided in me. "His grandmother got Betty mixed up with Polly and she said something to us when we wandered off."

"Oh. Well, he was playing it all cool, like it was no big deal to go into the other room with her, but it felt kind of like an act."

"Like treating an elopement like a naughty weekend?"

"You think they eloped?"

"It's a possibility."

"Should I tell Sheriff Keller what I know? I mean, they could at least drop the kidnapping charges."

"Thanks, but it's possible someone took Jason later, or maybe he really did plan to come home after the weekend, Cheryl's drowning story aside."

"I just want to help, Jug."

It crossed my mind that he had made this all up, but he looked so sincere and he must've known that he might have to repeat it under oath. I wondered if truth in a mystery was like the shape of water, constantly changing until and unless it solidified or found something to contain it. "I know, Arch, and I appreciate it, but let me think about this awhile."

He nodded and then we did homework until dinnertime.


	17. The School Principal

The next day, the whispers and pointing started. I deliberately stayed off social media, but that didn't mean I wasn't aware of other people sneaking looks at their phones in class.

No one said anything to me directly, except Ethel, and all she said before the hallway crowd swept her away was "Jughead, is it true?"

I just shrugged. I assumed they'd all seen or at least heard about the _Register_ article about my dad's arrest. There may've been rumors on top of that. The detective side of me was curious, but I kind of didn't want to know.

It was raining at lunchtime. Betty had suggested in homeroom we meet in the _Blue and Gold_ office again, but I decided to be brave and face everyone. Plus it was Taco Tuesday.

I had texted her after dinner, while Archie was in the bathroom: **Can you meet me at Pop's after school tomorrow?** I figured we needed longer than lunchtime to discuss what Archie had told me about his Greendale encounter with Jason. Also, it'd been a few days since I'd gone to Pop's and I missed the fries.

She replied **I have plans with Veronica, but I can meet her later.**

I wondered but didn't ask if this had to do with the dance. I'd never given any thought before to how many steps girls went through to get ready for a dance they weren't even necessarily attending. Maybe Tuesday would be trying on but not yet buying shoes.

As I entered the cafeteria, I knew that we couldn't say anything about my dad, even though he was on everyone's mind. I tried to tune out the crowd as I got my taco and rice. To my surprise, Miss Beazley, the grizzled cafeteria lady, gave me a sympathetic look and an extra ladleful of rice, although she snapped, "All right, Jones, keep the line moving!" a moment later.

I found my friends at our usual table. Betty and Archie, but Kevin and Veronica, too. I couldn't help wondering what possible topic was neutral enough to discuss in the group, at that point and in that setting. They were talking about the essay for Grundy's class and when we were likely to get it back. I didn't say much and just quickly shoveled in my food.

I went to see if I could get seconds, but while I was in line, Cheryl strode over to me on red thigh-high boots, a minion on either side. I had enough time to think that this was a more public confrontation than the day before. Then she slapped my face. It wasn't hard and I almost felt like we were onstage and she was actually slapping her own hand, except my face tingled afterwards.

She turned and strode right out the door, the lunch monitors I guess as stunned as I was, since they didn't stop her. The minions glared at me and then followed her out.

I was aware of whispers and laughter, especially at the jocks' table, and I braced myself for whatever Reggie was about to yell out. I was surprised to see a guilty look on Moose's face, like he regretted finding Jason's jacket.

Just as Reggie opened his mouth, Mr. Weatherbee said over the PA system, "Will Forsythe Jones please report to the principal's office?"

That didn't exactly quiet the crowd down. This time I looked only at a concerned pair of green eyes. Then I set down my tray and left the cafeteria.

I thought about going home. Not Archie's and not the Twilight, but the trailer. I was trailer trash and my father was in jail.

Then I thought of Betty's eyes and I squared my shoulders. I sent myself to the principal's office.

I wondered what I'd done wrong, but I hadn't broken any rules lately. Well, OK, trespassing when I got to campus early to shower. But I wouldn't be doing that anymore.

It was more likely about my dad. Maybe the Bee wanted to offer me sympathy, although he certainly could've done it in a less public manner.

Mr. Weatherbee's secretary nodded and said, "Go right in," so I went right in.

He gestured that I should sit, so I took the wooden chair that students got. He was silent, but I wasn't going to go first.

Then he sighed and said, "I need to talk to you about your father."

"Yes, Sir?" My tone was polite but distant.

"I'm very sorry to be the one to tell you this, but Sheriff Keller thought you should know as soon as possible."

I leaned forward a little. "Is there new evidence?"

He looked startled at my sounding more like a detective than a son. He coughed and then said, "I'm afraid your father has confessed."

I was surprised but intrigued. Why would he confess even if he were guilty? And why wait a couple days after the arrest? Had he decided that there was no way he wouldn't be sentenced and he might as well not wait around for the trial to learn his fate? And what exactly had he confessed to? "Was it kidnapping or grand theft auto? Or both?"

I thought the expression on the Bee's face meant that he couldn't believe my reaction, that I should be upset by what he was telling me. But then he quietly said, "He confessed to murder, Jughead."

I felt the top of the wooden chair hit my shoulders, although I wasn't aware that I'd stopped leaning forward. Even though I'd darkly joked with Betty about my dad being a killer, I hadn't really thought it was possible. "But there's no body!" I exclaimed. Then I added uncertainly, "Or is there?"

"Sheriff Keller didn't give me the details. But he wanted me to tell you about the confession. And I thought, under the circumstances, you'd like to take the rest of the day off."

I almost said, "What would my dad have to confess to for me to get the rest of the week off?" But I knew Mr. Weatherbee meant well, so I just said, "Thanks. Sir."

"Quite all right, Jughead."

I noticed that he'd called me by my nickname twice, when it was usually "Mr. Jones" if anything. I guess it wouldn't have been appropriate to summon me with it though. Normally, I'd have been embarrassed to have everyone hear "Forsythe" but it was the least of my worries.

I realized Mr. Weatherbee was waiting for me to say something again, so I asked, "Can I go now?"

"Of course, Son. And let me know if you need anything."

"Bail money?"

His chuckle was uneasy, and I didn't tell him I wasn't kidding.


	18. Rich Kids

Just like the Tuesday before, I was at Pop's after school. A lot had changed in that week, but I again looked up from my laptop and saw Betty and Veronica. I was just as annoyed by the latter's presence as I'd been before. Why did she have to break in on my time with Betty?

"I hope your chauffeur doesn't mind that this will take awhile," I said before the girls could sit down or even say hello.

Instead of acting embarrassed or offended, Veronica slid into the other side of the booth and said, "Smithers isn't a chauffeur. He's a butler."

"Oh, I beg your pardon, Princess."

"Jughead!" Betty scolded.

"It's OK, B, I've got this."

Betty shook her head but went over to the counter to order from Pop. I hoped that didn't mean they were getting their food to go. I'd rather put up with Veronica than scare both girls away with my snark.

"Look, Jones, I know it bothers you that even though our fathers are both imprisoned, I've still got a limo, a fabulous wardrobe, and a loyal servant, while you'd be homeless if it weren't for the Andrewses' charity."

That drew blood, but I couldn't let her see. "Hey, I've got a bus pass, an awesome hat, and loyal friends."

She looked down at the table and quietly said, "Friends are important."

I was too thrown off to reply to that, and then Betty sat down next to Veronica. "Why did Mr. Weatherbee want to see you, Jughead?"

So word hadn't gotten out yet about the confession. I had gone from Weatherbee's office to my locker to Archie's house. I turned off my phone when I left school and I didn't want to face my laptop. Somehow I fell into a dreamless sleep on the spare mattress on the floor of Archie's room, all my clothes on except my shoes. Then I awoke with a jolt right as school got out, and I remembered my promise to meet Betty at Pop's.

I glanced at Veronica and decided she was going to find out soon enough, even if I didn't answer Betty's question then and there. "My dad confessed to Jason's murder."

"No!" Betty gasped, her hands going to her face.

Veronica was much less shocked as she asked, "So where's the body?"

I hesitated again and then I told them what Archie had told me about his Greendale encounter.

To my surprise, when I finished, Veronica laughed and said, "Good thing Kevin isn't here."

"What?"

"You know, Jason being 'moist' in his shorts and T-shirt. I assume Jason was Kevin's type since Archie is."

"Would Jason have been your type?" I had to ask.

She stared at me and I wondered if I'd gone too far. It belatedly occurred to me that I probably shouldn't be trying to find out her feelings about Archie in front of Betty.

Then Veronica whispered, "Did Cheryl tell you?"

I couldn't remember Cheryl ever mentioning Veronica, except in relation to the evening at the drive-in, which now struck me as a little odd. Cheryl was very gossipy and Veronica was the new girl. Also, they were both rich, at least by Riverdale standards, and I would've expected them to be rivals.

"Ronnie," Betty asked, "did you know the Blossoms before you moved to town?"

Veronica looked around the diner as if making sure we were the only customers. Then Pop came over with the girls' orders and they thanked him.

Veronica waited until she dunked a fry into my pool of ketchup, without asking, before she said, "I met the Blossoms in the City."

"Then why did you act like you'd never met Cheryl before?"

"Did I?"

"You asked us what Cheryl's deal was and if she'd always been a mean girl."

"Well, you have known her much longer than I have. And you did go to her birthday party when almost no one else did."

"She told you about that?"

"When she heard I was moving to Riverdale, she gave me the 411 on her classmates."

That explained why Veronica was so up on everything her first day, even about Moose and Midge being a couple, and why there had been gaps in her knowledge, like her not knowing Betty had a sister.

"Then why didn't she tell you about Polly?" Betty asked.

"Well, Polly would've been a junior this year, but yeah, I've been wondering about that, too, especially since I found out that Polly might be connected to Jason."

"And what's your connection to Jason?" I doubted that it was just that they'd danced the waltz at a cotillion.

"I almost married him."

My jaw dropped enough that part of my burger fell out, while Betty did a spit-take of her strawberry shake that landed on my shirt.

"Ew, gross!" Veronica cried, as if we were being disgusting for fun like Reggie and the jocks.

"Sorry, Juggy," Betty said, holding out her napkin like she was going to dab my chest.

"Thanks," I said and took the napkin from her to dab my own shirt.

She looked at Veronica and said, "You're only fifteen. And Jason is, or was, sixteen."

"And, as Jughead pointed out last week, we're below the age of consent in this state. But we definitely would've had our parents' permission, not that they wanted the wedding before I finish college."

I stared at her speechless, but Betty said, "You wanted to marry him and they were OK with it?"

"It was their idea. Well, our fathers'. And we weren't engaged. They were still in negotiations when my father got arrested."

"And then Jason died and you must've been relieved you wouldn't have to marry him."

"That's why I killed him," she said nonchalantly as she stole more of my ketchup.

"Gee, I wish you had confessed before. It would've saved us all so much worry."

"I didn't want to spoil your fun, Sherlock."

"Too bad I happen to know you have an alibi for that weekend." I was bluffing but it wasn't like she was a serious suspect.

"Ah, but Smithers doesn't and he's devoted to me."

"Stop it, you two," Betty scolded. "V, are you serious about the part about you going along with an arranged marriage?"

Veronica shrugged. "He looked good on paper: rich, handsome, athletic. And we got along when we met in person."

"But, Ronnie, you're—" She glanced at me before continuing. "You're so independent."

"I didn't commit to anything. I kept my options open."

"And if he's alive and well with Polly?" I said. "You're happy for them?"

"Of course," she said serenely and then glanced at her Swiss watch. "B, we've got to scoot if we're going to make the bus to Greendale."

"What's in Greendale?" I doubted they were going there just for a Dunky's run.

"Shoes. But we'll let you know if we spot Jason."

"Thanks, although that's going to screw up my dad's guilty plea."

"Jug, it's going to be OK. I promise."

"Thanks, Bets." I wished we could've talked more and on our own, but I was used to settling for what I could get.


	19. Jailhouse Rock

Wednesday I took a sick day, although it was more of a mental health day.

"Uh, do you want me to write you a note?" Mr. Andrews offered at breakfast.

"Thanks, but you're not my parent or guardian."

I tried to keep the bitterness out of my voice. When he got home from work, he'd said, "Jughead, I am so sorry. FP was always..." He shook his head, at a loss for words. He and my dad were best friends in high school but drifted apart as adults. I hoped that wouldn't happen to me and Archie, if it wasn't happening already.

Archie promised to bring me my homework, even for the classes we didn't share. It occurred to me that it probably wasn't going to be easy for him to face everyone at school, as the best friend of a murderer's son.

Betty texted me during homeroom, although Grundy had a strict no-phones policy. **R u ok 🍶🗣?**

I had to laugh, although I could imagine the worry on her face. It was a sign of her concern that she wasn't spelling words out, and the emojis were far from light-hearted. (I thought for a moment she was calling me "Bottleneck," because of the sake bottle emoji.)

**Yes, now put your phone away before G catches you.**

😝

I let myself get distracted by the thought of Betty's tongue and then I turned off my phone to stop myself from replying.

After that, I sat in front of the television, zoning out. I deliberately avoided any news stations as I surfed, although the odds were against my dad's confession making anything other than the six o' clock news out of Albany. Then again, this was the kind of murder people loved. A young, rich, good-looking victim, a killer who was a gang member, and all the mystery surrounding them.

I suddenly remembered it was Wednesday and turned off the TV. The midweek edition of the _Register_ must've come out that morning. I hadn't thought about it at the time, but Mr. Andrews hadn't been reading the paper at the breakfast table. The times I'd done Saturday night sleepovers, Archie and I would come down to find his dad engrossed in the Sunday paper, although he'd automatically hand Archie the sports section, me the comics.

I was sure he got the Wednesday paper, too, but he wouldn't have wanted me to see my dad's face on the front page.

Where would he have hidden it? His bedroom? The basement? The attic? I tried to think like Fred Andrews, so I looked in the paper recycling bin and there it was.

I took it to the kitchen table and unfolded it. The front page news was about the Twilight closing down. Did Mr. and Mrs. Cooper not know about the confession, or did they just not find out in time to print it? Maybe it would be in the online edition at noon.

I idly flipped through the paper, not feeling up to reading about the death of the drive-in. Then I stopped when I got to the local section.

 _MISSING BOY MAYBE MURDERED._ I caught my breath. I took a moment to think that it was a shame that Jason might not have lived to be a man, since that would've made for a more alliterative headline. Then I plunged in, having to know the worst.

I wasn't prepared for Mrs. Cooper— it was her name on the byline— to paint my dad as delusional. OK, there was no corpse, but I'd rather hear that my dad was a ruthless killer than think he was under the false belief that he was one.

It did, however, explain one thing. I'd been waiting the last couple days for Mrs. Cooper to storm over and tell Mr. Andrews that she could not allow the son of a criminal to live next door to her precious daughter. But she hadn't. Not that she approved of me, but she hadn't grounded Betty or forbidden her to see me.

I suddenly wondered if Mrs. Cooper was in contact with Polly. Maybe she didn't share her husband's dislike of the Blossoms and maybe she knew what'd happened to Jolly. But then, if she knew Jason was alive and with Polly, wouldn't she want people to think he was dead?

I knew I wouldn't get any answers out of Mrs. Cooper, and I doubted Betty would either. But maybe it was time for me to talk to my own difficult parent.

Mr. Andrews had told me to wait a few days and see what happened, but that was before the confession. I didn't know if my dad even wanted to see me, but I had to at least try.

I went back upstairs and stripped off my pajamas. I took a hot, invigorating shower. Then I put on everyday clothes. I'd tried to remember what prison visitors wore in movies, and it seemed like it was a little dressy, like a tie but not a jacket. I decided that this was just a small town jail and I didn't need to impress Sheriff Keller or my dad. I just needed them to listen to me.

It was a beautiful, sunny day, still technically summer. It occurred to me that if I was going to play hooky, there were better places to go, but I had to do this.

It was a long walk, and I could see why the sheriff had driven Betty home Saturday night. But I was used to long walks and preferred them to bus rides, especially if I was just roaming Riverdale. They gave me time to think, and I certainly had plenty to think about that morning.

When Sheriff Keller looked up from his desk, it wasn't with surprise. "FP said he thought you'd be coming by."

Maybe it was better that I was expected. "Can I see him?"

The sheriff hesitated and then nodded. He stood up and grabbed a ring of keys from a peg on the wall. Then he wordlessly led me out of his office and down the hallway.

I'd been in the jail before. I could visualize Betty's new friend, the baby-fatted, eager son of the sheriff, leading the serious tomboy with the long blonde ponytail and her two best friends, the athletic yet accident-prone redhead with the open, freckled face and the scrawny, wary kid with the jagged hat over his messy black hair. Leading them to an empty jail cell, desperate to impress them.

I can't say I had never imagined my father behind those bars, but never for a serious crime. Yet there he was, three years after I'd first seen this cell. He was more unshaven than ever but actually looked better than the last time I'd seen him, passed out drunk in the trailer.

He looked up at me with his haunted brown eyes. (Mine are a less blue shade of green than Betty's.) "Thanks for dropping by, Kid."

I shrugged. "I was in the neighborhood."

"Five minutes, Jones."

I wasn't sure if the sheriff was talking to me or my dad, but my dad nodded and said, "Thanks, Tom."

As the sheriff returned the nod and headed back down the hallway, I remembered that he had grown up in Riverdale, too, gone to high school with my dad and Fred Andrews.

"He told me he used to go to the Twilight, with his buddies and their girlfriends."

If my dad was surprised by the choice of subject, he didn't show it. Then he surprised me by singing in a husky but pleasant voice, "Stranded at the drive-in, branded a fool. What will they say Monday at school?"

"Now I know what you were doing near a karaoke bar."

Instead of directly replying, he said, "I always thought _Grease_ had a tragic ending."

"Do you mean the flying car or Sandy dressing like a slut to win back Danny?"

"She looked hot and you know it."

I didn't say that I preferred Olivia Newton-John's "nice girl" look. "Why tragic? Everyone's made up and it's happy endings for everyone."

"That's the thing, Jughead. What comes after the ending?"

"The closing credits? _Grease 2_?"

"They sing that they'll always be together, but the buddies drift apart and no one marries his high school girlfriend."

"So you killed Jason to spare him that."

"It's as good a reason as any."

"How'd you do it?" I remembered my exchange with Veronica the day before, the hostile game we played, although I was not so sure of my father's innocence.

"Shotgun," he said laconically.

"Where's the body?"

"Being taken care of in another country."

"What if I don't believe you?"

"Then you'll have to find the truth."

"Sorry, Son, but your time is up."

I turned and nodded at Sheriff Keller. I left without saying goodbye to my dad, just like the last time I walked out of the trailer.


	20. Mamma Mia

After I left the police station, I thought about calling Betty, although she would've been in Professor Flootsnoot's Biology II class. I could imagine her surprise that my dad and I hadn't spoken as parent and child, that I hadn't even expressed shock or anger at his alleged crimes. But my father and I had always had a peculiar, enigmatic relationship, and his riddles, if that's what they were, fit his mystique.

I wasn't sure where to go next. I thought about heading to the trailer, not to search for clues, since I was pretty sure the police had been all over it in the past three days, but just because it'd been so long. However, it felt wrong somehow to go while my dad's fate was in limbo. Yes, he'd confessed but he hadn't yet been convicted. I felt like something, maybe or maybe not my and Betty's sleuthing, was going to save him from himself. And if I was wrong, well, I'd go back when it was time to clear out our belongings.

As I walked in the later morning sunshine, I remembered that Andrews Construction wasn't far away. I decided to go talk to Archie's dad. Yes, I would see him when he got home from work, but I wanted to see him right then, maybe tell him about visiting my dad, get some sort of advice or at least reassurance. I felt a little bad about bothering him at work, but my dad's fate was a big enough excuse.

When I got there, I could see Veronica's mom standing by the window. I'd half forgotten she worked there, although I'd talked to Archie about it a little Saturday night. I hesitated, wondering if I should do this while she was there, but maybe we could step outside, or she could. Or maybe she'd have words of wisdom and/or comfort, as a criminal's wife.

Then Mr. Andrews came into view, the window like a screen. I mean, not a window screen, but a computer screen or movie screen. Maybe that's why I stood frozen like a viewer, a voyeur, for the next pivotal minute.

At first, when she put her hand on his arm, I thought she was comforting him over his old friend being in jail, and if it had led to a hug, I would've waited until it was over and then gone up the steps and knocked on the door. But it led to a kiss, by the looks of it not their first. There was nothing tentative about it, although maybe it's different when you're middle-aged and have twenty-five or thirty years of kissing experience.

My first thought was that Archie was wrong about it having been platonic on Saturday. Then it occurred to me that it was probably a good thing that Verchie seemed unlikely to happen, because there was a chance they might end up as step-siblings. And then I remembered that Archie's dad and Veronica's mom were married to other people.

I could've confronted them, but that definitely wasn't my style. It did shake up my image of Mr. Andrews, but he was human and his wife had been gone for over a year.

As for Mrs. Lodge, I didn't really know her. I'd read about the Lodges online and I'd heard a little about them from Kevin and my other friends, but I knew much more about Veronica and Hiram than I did Hermione.

I turned away and started walking. I decided to go to the Twilight and cook up a double or even triple feature just for myself. Mr. Klump had told me he wasn't going to clear out the projection booth until the night before Mr. Andrews's team arrived, and he'd said I could take anything I wanted ahead of time. But then I wouldn't exactly have been traveling light, would I?

I went with _Peyton Place,_ the original _Stepford Wives,_ and _Blue Velvet._ Movies about small towns with secrets. I knew Riverdale's secrets probably weren't that bizarre, but I also knew that there was something bubbling under the surface, a surface as sweet and smooth as the maple syrup that the Blossom family fortune was founded on.

On my walk back to Archie's place, I thought about what I knew about Veronica's mother. She had no other children. She was presumably good at math, since she was an accountant. She looked good for her age, like Veronica plus a quarter century. She may or may not have approved of her husband's crimes, or his matchmaking their underage daughter, but there was no proof she'd objected out loud. And she used to go to the drive-in with Fred Andrews.

I turned around and started walking backwards, mentally retracing different paths. Was she his high school girlfriend, the one he didn't marry? I knew the Kellers met in the army, and she was still deployed in the Middle East. My parents met in a bar and she beat him at pool. And Fred was attracted to the redheaded young law clerk who patiently explained business contracts to him. I didn't know who my dad or Kevin's dad dated in high school, but it looked like if Archie's dad hadn't dated Veronica's mom then, he certainly wanted to now.

I realized that this all probably had nothing to do with the mystery of Jason Blossom, no matter what my dad had said that morning. But I could obviously wonder about more than one thing at once.

I didn't know if I'd tell anyone about the kiss. Archie had dismissed the idea of his dad cheating on his mom, and I didn't know how he'd respond if I told him I had proof. Maybe I should leave it for his dad to tell him, but what if he found out I knew and he got mad I didn't say anything? Then again, it was just a kiss.

I still hadn't made up my mind when I turned the Andrewses' spare key in the front lock and smelled fresh-baked cookies. I hadn't expected anyone to be home. Mr. Andrews was presumably still at work, with Mrs. Lodge. And Archie should've been at practice, for football or music. Not sitting on the couch, grinning like an idiot.

"I have a surprise for you."

"Yeah, homemade cookies." I took another sniff. "Backpackers?" When had I last had backpacker cookies? It must've been five or six years, when I went camping with Archie and his parents.

"That's not all," he said and his grin somehow got wider.

"Sweetie, is Jughead home?"

It'd been over a year but I would know that voice anywhere. "Your mom's here?" I whispered.

He nodded eagerly and then she came out of the kitchen with a plate full of cookies. She had an apron on over her navy blue pantsuit and maybe a little gray in her Archie-red hair, but it was unmistakably her.

She grinned, too. "You haven't changed, Jughead Jones. You always show up just in time to eat."

I wanted to say I'd changed a lot in a year, but I didn't think her son had even noticed. And I wanted to ask what she was doing there, but it was her house, not mine. So I said, "What time's dinner?", which made her laugh.

"Six o clock, after Fred comes home."

I wanted to ask if he knew she'd come home, but I didn't know how.

Then Archie exclaimed like he couldn't contain himself anymore, "She's taking your dad's case, Jug! Pro bono!"

"Wow! That's, that great!" I gasped. Then I grabbed three cookies off the plate, amusing both Archie and his mother, the big Chicago lawyer.


	21. Plan Nine

I would've taken that Thursday off, too, but it felt different now that Mrs. Andrews was back. It wasn't just that there was another person in the house. It was that it was her, the nicest of all the moms I knew, mine included. If I spent any time alone with her, I would spill my guts about everything, from my crush on Betty to her husband's affair. Not to mention, she was my dad's lawyer and he was top suspect in my investigation.

"...Who else have we got?" Betty tapped her pen impatiently against the scarred wood table in the _Blue and Gold_ office.

She'd insisted we go there for lunch, and I gave in, although I'd braved all my morning classes and would endure the ones in the afternoon. She knew I needed this time alone with her, working on the mystery, although she couldn't have known how much I needed it.

I sighed wearily and read from the list on my laptop. "Polly. Your parents. Jason's parents. His sister. I guess his grandmother if she moved from eccentric and delusional to psychotic and violent. Anyone. No one."

"Wait a minute, how does she drive?"

"Who?"

"Nana Rose. It's her car, right?"

"The Impala? Yeah. Or at least that's what Cheryl says."

"But she's in a wheelchair, or at least she was four years ago. I didn't notice one at L'établissement Chic, but it could've been rolled discreetly out of sight. The thing is, if she's still driving, she should've had modifications done to her old car. But Kevin didn't notice anything."

"Well, maybe she doesn't drive anymore. Maybe she has a chauffeur, or a butler."

"Smithers is really nice by the way."

"What?"

"I've only met him a couple times, but Smithers the butler is nice."

"He's paid to be nice."

She shook her head and said, "Juggy."

"Jason said it was her car, too. Or at least he was looking for it in Greendale, and Archie remembered it as her car."

"That's right. Has he told you anything else? I mean about the case."

"Just that he asked his mom to handle it, without checking with his dad first."

"I meant the case we're investigating, not the legal case, but that sounds like typical Archie."

"How do you mean?"

"You know, thoughtful and thoughtless at the same time."

I nodded. He wanted to help me and my dad, and he knew we couldn't afford a lawyer. So he got his mom to do it, but in his rush to surprise me, he hadn't thought about his dad's surprise. Yes, the separation was amicable, but Archie hadn't considered that it would still be awkward for the estranged couple to share a home again, especially when one of them hadn't planned on it. And it wasn't like the house had a spare bedroom. Of course, Archie didn't know about Hermione Lodge, so there was a whole other layer of awkwardness he was oblivious to.

"I still can't believe my dad loaned her Polly's bed."

Apparently, Archie asked him for it and the two of them carried it down to the Andrewses' basement while I was having my triple feature. This meant, one, Mr. Cooper had known that Mrs. Andrews was coming to town and he'd failed to mention it to her husband or his own wife and daughter, and two, he must've given up on his other daughter ever coming back.

"Well, Mr. and Mrs. Andrews are estranged," I said. I really wanted to tell her about the adulterous kiss, but not at school. "Listen, can we meet at Pop's later? Or do you have plans with Veronica?"

"No, she's got plans with Kevin."

Good, then that meant she wouldn't tag along again. Yes, we'd gotten some surprising information about Jason last time, but I particularly didn't want her there when I told Betty about Veronica's mother and Archie's dad. Yes, I felt a little guilty about wanting to tell Betty before Archie, but at least it didn't involve her parents, and she was comparatively a disinterested bystander.

Not uninterested though. "Gosh, Juggy, how awful for you!" she exclaimed when I was done.

"Well, it's not like it's my dad cheating on my mom." Although I'd have been grateful if that was the worst thing he'd done.

"I know, but you look up to him, and Archie is like your brother. You must feel really conflicted."

"I always feel conflicted."

She didn't laugh, but then I hadn't been joking. "Are you going to tell Archie?"

"I haven't decided. What do you think?"

"I don't know. I'm trying to decide whether to tell Veronica."

I hadn't really thought about that aspect. "I'm sorry."

"No, I'm glad you told me. You have enough to cope with anyway, and I want to support you."

"Thanks, Bets." I felt like I was about to confess my feelings for her, but I ended up asking, "How did your parents meet?"

"They were both on their college newspaper. Why do you ask?"

I told her what I'd left out when I replayed my jailhouse visit, about how none of the buddies married his high school girlfriend.

"And Fred Andrews's girlfriend was probably Hermione Gomez?"

"I think so."

"I wonder who your dad and Sheriff Keller dated."

"My mother says FP Jones was a player and Tom Keller dated Mayor McCoy, before she was mayor obvs."

"Hello, Cheryl, I didn't see you come in."

I had my back to the door but I hadn't heard the stiletto red heels on the tiled floor. "What are you, a ninja?"

"If I were, you'd be dead by now."

"So slapping me in front of the entire school wasn't vengeance enough?"

"For your dad killing my brother? I don't think so."

"Wait, you knew about the confession before I did? And why didn't you say anything at the time?"

"Duh, because obvs it was more dramatic my way."

"Dramatic?" Betty repeated, wrinkling her forehead, while I said, "Have a seat."

"I thought you'd never ask," Cheryl said and slid in next to Betty.

"What's going on?" Betty asked.

Cheryl looked around and then whispered, "Can we trust Pop?"

"What, you think he's going to poison you?" I scoffed.

Cheryl rolled her eyes. "I'm not even sure I should trust you two, but Veronica said she told you about her and Jason, and she told me about Archie seeing Jason in Greendale, so...."

"Wait, what?" Betty exclaimed, as I shouted, "Damn her!"

"Relax. I, unlike some people, can keep a secret. And she wanted to comfort me, to give me hope that Jason is still alive."

"We don't know anything for sure," Betty said.

"Good," Cheryl said.

"Good?!" I sputtered.

"Jason wanted everyone to be confused," Betty said slowly, as if she'd just put it together.

I scrambled to catch up, although I felt like I was running in mud, or syrup. "So he told you to say he drowned. Knowing that there would be no body."

"And then Jughead's dad would confess to Jason's murder, knowing there would be no body!" Betty cried.

Cheryl shook her head. "I don't know what FP's doing, throwing away his whole admittedly pathetic future. But I really doubt that was part of Jason's plan."

"What, you don't know your brother's plan?"

"I know more than most people, Forsythe, but he didn't tell anybody everything. It was and is safer this way. I didn't even know about Polly until my grandmother told me."

"Can you please back up?" Betty asked far more politely than I could've.

"Can I have a bite of your cheeseburger?"

"Uh, sure."

"Thank you." Cheryl managed to eat a mouthful without smearing her cherry red lipstick or getting cheese under her long blood red fingernails. "Mmm, yummy. Can you hand me a napkin?"

"OK." Betty took one out of the holder and passed it to Cheryl, who carefully dabbed her face without ruining her makeup.

As with Kevin's tale of his karaoke date, I was getting a little impatient, but I could respect Cheryl's performance art. And, unlike Kevin, Cheryl couldn't be trusted to tell the truth, so I might as well enjoy the show.

"Thank you. OK, so it was late June, a couple weeks after school got out. And Jason told me he was going to run away."

"But he didn't mention Polly?" Betty asked.

"Did she ever mention him to you?"

"Well, no, but she didn't ask me to lie for her."

"Did he give any reason for leaving?" I asked.

"Just that he needed to be free to do something that he knew our parents wouldn't approve of."

"Like run off with Polly?"

"I guess, yeah."

"Was he planning on coming back?" Betty asked.

"I don't know. The drowning story left it sort of open-ended. If things didn't work out with his new life, he could always come back from the dead." Cheryl glared at me. "And now your dad has screwed things up for no reason, which is reason enough to slap you."

"I'm sure my dad has his reasons, even if I don't know what they are. I assure you, he's getting some benefit out of this."

"Well," Cheryl conceded, "maybe Jason paid him."

Betty shook her head. "Unless Mr. Jones killed Jason after Archie saw him, I can't see any benefit Mr. Jones would get that would make it worthwhile to confess to a murder. He should've just admitted to grand theft auto and said he had no idea what Jason's jacket was doing in the car."

Both girls looked at me. I shrugged. "I guess we'll have to see what he tells his lawyer."

"What about attorney-client privilege?" Betty asked, as Cheryl gasped, "FP has a lawyer?"


	22. Say Anything

I was relieved that none of the Andrews family was there when I got home from Pop's. It wasn't too bad at dinner and breakfast, but I wasn't ready to talk to any of them one-on-one. The night before, I'd gone to sleep early, just so I wouldn't have to talk to Archie.

On Thursday, I got a little homework done before Archie came up to his room.

He'd been to the final football practice before the Friday captain tryouts. I tried to listen and be supportive, but it was hard to focus.

"... Well, anyway, that's not really what I wanted to tell you."

"Let me guess. You saw Elvis in Greendale, too."

He didn't laugh. "I did see someone, but it was at the drive-in on Saturday."

"Yeah?" He'd piqued my curiosity, mostly because I wondered who had shown up that I'd missed.

"Yeah, it was when Betty and I were heading to the snack bar. I was trying to focus on what Betty was saying, even though she blindsided me. And I could see two people in the distance behind her. A man and a woman, talking intensely, although I couldn't hear it. I didn't recognize the woman right away, but the man was your dad."

I wasn't that surprised. I hadn't seen my dad or the other Serpents that night, but like I said, I didn't have a panoramic view from the projection booth. I did wonder what his conversation was about, although I didn't see how it connected to the mystery, unless the woman had been Mrs. Blossom or Mrs. Cooper. And Archie would've recognized one of them, even at a distance.

"There was something vaguely familiar about her. Then I realized. It was Mrs. Lodge."

I hadn't been expecting that, although maybe I should've, since she was one of the few adults I knew for a fact had gone to the last picture show. I didn't know what they'd been talking about, but they definitely weren't strangers. They went to high school together, and she'd probably been his best friend's girlfriend.

"I didn't know whether to tell you. Especially because your parents are separated."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

His ears reddened. "Well, not that it was exactly cheating...."

"What? Did they kiss or even touch?"

"Well, no, but there was something about their body language."

"OK, but she was there on a date with your dad."

"No, I told you, they're just friends and she works for him."

"Um, yeah, about that." It was time to tell him, especially if he thought that the married man Mrs. Lodge was cheating with was my dad, not his.

"What?"

"I saw them kiss, your dad and Veronica's mom."

"At the drive-in?"

"No, at their work, through a window."

"A real kiss?"

I wasn't sure what he meant by real but I nodded.

I waited for him to deny it, to say that I misunderstood, that his dad wouldn't cheat, even if his parents were separated. When he finally spoke, it was a quiet "I wish you'd told me before."

"It was yesterday morning."

"Oh. Your sick day?"

"Yeah. After I visited my dad."

"Oh, how did that go?"

"It was weird. Well, I guess it would be by definition."

"Did he say why he confessed?"

"No. Do you think he's told your mom anything?"

He shrugged, then sighed. "Should I tell her anything? I mean about my dad and Mrs. Lodge."

"I don't know. I didn't know you were going to ask her to come home. Not that I'm not grateful of course. It's just, you know, the timing."

He sighed again. "I don't think I'll say anything about my dad and Mrs. Lodge. It's not like I saw it, and I'm not really sure what terms my parents are on these days."

Mr. and Mrs. Andrews never fought like my parents. As far as I knew, things had just fizzled out between them over the years. They were civil and even friendly over dinner, once he got over his surprise in seeing her.

"Boys, are you home?" Mrs. Andrews called upstairs just then.

Archie and I looked at each other and nodded, then went downstairs and helped put away groceries.


	23. Better Than Chocolate

"Yeah, why not? I can't go with Moose and you can't go with your favorite redhead."

By Friday, I was used to people breaking off their conversations when they saw me, but it was different when Veronica shushed Kevin in the hallway. I knew this had nothing to do with my father's arrest and confession. I suspected it had something to do with the dance the next night, which was confirmed towards the end of another working lunch.

Betty and I met in the _Blue and Gold_ office again, not that we had much new to discuss about the mystery, but I still needed a midday break from other people. Mostly we talked about articles for both the print and online editions of the newspaper. I agreed to interview Professor Flootsnoot the next week, since he was celebrating his thirtieth anniversary at Riverdale High.

"..And, um, I'll be at the dance tomorrow night, so I can take pictures with my phone."

"So you are going?"

"Yes, I decided it doesn't matter about Archie. I mean, it still hurts, but we're still friends. And like Ronnie says, friends are important."

"Yeah," I said quietly, then I cleared my throat. "It's still brave of you to go alone."

"Well, I thought Ronnie and I might go together, but she texted me that she's going with Kevin, as friends obviously."

"Hey, he's supposed to be your gay best friend!"

"I don't mind. Are you going?"

"You're kidding, right?"

"There'll be snacks, Juggy," she teased.

"Well, in that case...."

"Why don't we go together?"

"As friends obviously?"

"It'll be fun. And I won't make you dance much."

"Yeah, why not?" I said, aware that that was part of what I'd overheard Kevin say to Veronica a couple hours earlier. Then I remembered "your favorite redhead."

The first bell rang, the one that meant that lunch was over, but we wouldn't be late until the second bell.

As I put away my laptop and Betty gathered her pens, I thought of something else. "What about your mom? What if she doesn't like you going to the dance with the weird son of a lunatic and/or murderer?"

"My parents will be getting the Sunday edition of _The Register_ ready, so they won't even be home when we leave."

"Oh, well, good." I felt weirdly disappointed, like I wanted a confrontation with Mrs. Cooper.

"Do you want to go to Pop's today?" Betty asked as we went out to the hallway.

It was tempting but I felt weird about it now that we sort of had a date. I thought of saying that I was going to watch the football captain tryouts, and certainly as Archie's best friend I should've been there, but I didn't think I could face Reggie and the others.

"I'll take a rain check, since now I have to put an outfit together for the dance."

She laughed, although I wasn't entirely joking. Then we hurried to our separate classes.

I didn't go shopping after school. I'd lost my job and my dad was in jail. I guess I could've borrowed money from Archie or his folks, but I didn't even know how I was going to tell them I had a platonic date with Betty.

I suppose I could've turned her down, but the invitation snuck up on me. And I couldn't reject her less than a week after Archie did. Also, how do you say no to a date with your crush, even, no, especially a platonic date?

I didn't know what I'd wear to the dance. Somehow, I didn't think my outfit for brunch the previous Sunday would cut it. And, yes, it felt weird to be thinking about all this when my dad was possibly a killer. Going to the dance wouldn't exactly give me a low profile.

When I got to the house, I saw Mrs. Andrews's car out front. (She'd parked in the garage on Wednesday, as part of the surprise.) I knew I couldn't avoid her forever. I just wished that our one-on-one could turn out at least as well as the one with her son the day before, but that seemed unlikely.

This time when I came in, I smelled chocolate chip cookies. I wished I could just enjoy her visit and ignore the reason for it, or the secrets I had to keep from her.

"Jughead, is that you?"

"Yeah, it's me."

"Come keep me company while I finish the cookies."

As with Betty's invitation to the dance, it was an offer I couldn't refuse, although I might regret it later. I slipped off my backpack and went into the kitchen.

She was wearing her old apron again but this time over jeans and a short-sleeved striped blouse. Mom casual.

The cookies were still baking, but I took a banana out of the fruit bowl and sat down.

She smiled and asked, "How was school today?"

"It was OK. Grundy handed back the essays and I got a B-minus." It was a respectable if unimpressive grade. Under the circumstances, I was just glad I was able to do any schoolwork.

"Good. And how are you coping with the other kids? It must be hard these days."

She hadn't mentioned my dad yet, but I knew what she meant.

I shrugged. "It's not like I was ever Mr. Popular before."

She didn't laugh. "I know you think of yourself as a loner who doesn't need anyone, but you can still be hurt by other people."

I wanted to say something sarcastic, but I couldn't, not to her. I just muttered, "I'm used to my dad complicating my life."

"I also know you and your dad have always had a difficult relationship, but you care about each other."

"I guess."

"He's worried about you, Jughead."

"Me? I'm not the one in jail."

"Do you know why he confessed?"

From her tone, I knew it wasn't a rhetorical question, so I didn't ask, "No, why?" Instead I said, "I've been trying to figure that out."

"I think he's protecting someone."

"The real murderer?" I guessed, although I wasn't even sure there had been a murder.

"No, not exactly. It's hard to explain, which I realize is a funny thing for his lawyer to say."

"I know, he's hard to figure out."

She nodded. "Even years ago, when he...." She shook her head and said, "Well, maybe Fred understands him."

"Um, yeah," I said, thinking about Mr. Andrews and Mrs. Lodge.

"He seems happier these days."

"My dad?" I said incredulously.

She laughed. "No, Fred." The oven timer dinged and she got up to take the cookies out. So I couldn't see her facial expression when she said, "Hermione seems good for him."

Not only she did she know, but she assumed I knew. I cautiously said, "You think so?"

"Oo, they're hot!"

I knew she meant the cookies, not her husband and his girlfriend, so I said, "They smell good."

She set them on the counter and said, "Let's let them cool awhile."

"Thank you for baking, and cooking, for us."

I'd forgotten that her chuckle was surprisingly like Archie's. "You're welcome. I don't get to cook like this much, now that I'm on my own."

I hesitantly said, "So this is permanent? The separation I mean."

She sighed. "I think so. I'm enjoying this visit, other than worrying about your dad of course. But it is just a visit. Fred and I have both moved on, and Archie's growing up."

"Archie still needs you," I said, trying not to think of how I still needed my own mother.

"I know, and I'll try to do a better job of keeping in touch. I'm glad I'll get to hear him sing at the dance tomorrow night."

"You're going?"

"Yeah, do you want to be my date?" she joked.

"Um, I already have a platonic date."

She grinned. "With Betty?"

"Yeah, how did you know?"

"She was always the only girl who really mattered to you."

I wasn't sure how she meant that, but before I could ask, or even decide if I wanted to ask, I heard Archie yell, "Is that chocolate chip?"

His mom and I chuckled together.


	24. O Brother, Where Art Thou?

"Are you sure you're OK about not being picked as captain?" I asked Archie after he turned out the light.

"Yeah, I'll still get to play and at least it's not Reggie."

He'd told me and his mom, over chocolate chip cookies, that Coach Clayton picked Moose, to everyone's surprise, including Moose's. When Mr. Andrews found out at dinner, he seemed disappointed but glad that at least Archie was still on the team.

"And more time for your music, right?"

"Yeah." I could hear his bed creak as he got in.

"I bet Valerie is happy about that," I teased.

I could picture his ears turning red as he said, "She says she's happy if I'm happy."

"And you two are going to sing together at the dance tomorrow night?"

"Yeah, I'm really nervous. I hope I don't get stage fright."

"You'll be fine. Great."

"Thanks. Um, I know you hate dances, but can I talk you into going? I could use the support."

"Oh." This was it. The dance was less than 24 hours away and I'd have to tell him before I went. I wouldn't want him to find out when Betty and I walked in together.

"No, I'm sorry, never mind. That was stupid. I know it's hard enough for you at school now."

"I'm going!" I blurted out.

"It's OK, I'll be fine, like you said."

"No, I mean, I was already planning to go anyway."

"Really? Wow, you're such a good friend, Jug!"

I couldn't let him think I was that unselfish. "No, I mean, Betty asked me."

"Betty? She's so sweet! But it's still brave of you to go."

I could've left it at that, let him think Betty and I were both going as his moral support. But I owed him the truth, or at least part of the truth. "Thanks, but Betty's going to cover the dance for the school paper, and she asked me to go with her. Not that we won't cheer you on of course."

"Oh, OK. That explains why she's not going with Kevin."

"Kevin is going with Veronica."

"Oh." He sounded surprised, and I couldn't blame him. Veronica could have any guy she wanted, except Archie himself, since her new best friend wanted him.

"So since they're going as friends, she wanted to go with a friend."

"That's cool."

"Yeah, and I don't think she's ready for an actual date with someone she's interested in." I didn't say that she'd have to get over Archie first, but he knew it.

He wasn't thinking about that though, because he gasped my name and then hung his head over the side of the bed. My eyes had adjusted to the dark enough that I could see that his eyes, which were more auburn than the hair standing on end, were wide open. "Jughead," he whispered, "do you like Betty?"

I could've said, "Of course, she's one of my best friends," but I whispered back, "Yeah."

"Wow! Have you told her?"

"No, and can you stop staring down at me?"

"Sorry." He chuckled and fell back on his mattress. "So have you always liked her?"

"No, not like this."

"I thought you were asexual. Or aromantic."

"It's a continuum. Like how Kevin is very gay and you're very straight, but other people might be somewhere in between and identify as bisexual. I'm not very sexual or romantic, but I'm more than I used to think."

"Do you feel this way about other girls or are you just a Bettysexual?"

I didn't laugh. I knew he was trying to understand, and I'd struggled to understand it myself. It was simpler when I thought I was just different from everyone else, didn't have the feelings that they did. 

"Sometimes I'm attracted to women and girls in movies, but it's abstract. Betty is real, more real to me than any girl I know."

"How long have you been attracted to her?"

"I'm not sure. It's not like where you meet a girl and you instantly want to kiss her."

"Not instantly!" he protested, and then we both laughed.

"I became aware of my attraction this summer."

"Why didn't you tell me in Greendale?"

"I was still figuring it out. And I knew how Betty felt about you."

"I think I was the last person to know that," he muttered.

"You were too modest," I teased.

"Back to you and Betty. You want to kiss her?"

"Well, yeah. But she doesn't want to kiss me."

"Have you asked her?"

"Of course not!"

"Are you going to?"

"Ask her or kiss her?"

"Either. Both."

"Well, I wouldn't kiss her without asking. And I won't ask her for awhile."

"Until she's over me?"

"I guess, yeah."

"That could take years."

I threw my pillow up at him in the dark. I heard him catch it and then he threw it down at me, hitting me in the face. I tucked it under my head again.

"Goodnight, Arch."

"Goodnight, Jug."


	25. Shall We Dance?

In the movies, one of her parents would've answered the door and the other would've taken our picture after she made her entrance down the stairs. But Betty answered the door herself.

Her hair was in a high bun, showing off her neck, and of course that led my eyes down to her bare shoulders, and I couldn't let them linger on her silvery dress that gently hugged her curves, so I quickly looked down at her feet.

Then I met her blue-green eyes and said, "High-tops?"

"Well, it's a long walk to school in heels. I'll change when we get there."

"Oh, um, we have a ride."

She looked past me at the truck parked out front, so Mr. Andrews honked his horn and yelled, "Hurry up!"

"Fred!" his wife scolded, although she sounded like she wanted to laugh.

"I figured since our own parents aren't around to embarrass us, I should borrow Archie's."

She smiled. "Good idea." Then she frowned, "Is Archie going with us?"

"Uh, no, Mayor McCoy picked up him and the Pussycats because they had to get set up early."

"Oh, of course. Um, let me change my shoes."

I looked at the truck and signaled that we'd be out in a couple minutes. When I looked back, she'd already put on her silver high heels and was holding her high-tops.

"For the walk home."

I nodded. I'd rather not ride home with Mr. and Mrs. Andrews, although they meant well. Even though I'd told them this was a platonic date, they were as giddy as they'd been about Archie's first date, three years before, with Melody Valentine. (She went on to become a Pussycat, but it's not like they had a drama-filled relationship, just a couple visits to the Bijou and Pop's.)

"You look nice," I said, which I hoped was an adequate compliment, since I couldn't admit she looked stunning.

"Thanks, so do you."

Except for my boxers and socks, I was dressed completely in hand-me-downs. Not just the paisley tie, but a button-down shirt, jacket, slacks, and dress shoes I'd borrowed from Archie and his dad. Mrs. Andrews had made quick alterations that afternoon, since I was taller but skinnier than both her husband and her son.

"Thanks. Um, we should go."

Mr. and Mrs. Andrews weren't too bad on the way to the school, but it was only a five-minute drive. I knew they would tease me the next morning, but they behaved in front of Betty. Mostly we all talked about Archie's upcoming debut as a musician. His parents both sounded proud, whatever other plans his dad had for him. And they seemed oblivious to Betty's long-standing crush on their son.

Mr. Andrews pulled up right behind a black limo. Veronica flung herself out of the car and squealed, "Dios mío, B, we have so much to talk about!"

Less than a minute later, I was standing on the sidewalk with Mrs. Lodge and Mr. and Mrs. Andrews, watching Betty and Veronica disappear through the school entrance. (Smithers had driven away, with a promise to return at midnight.)

"Uh, Mary, this is Hermione."

Considering Mr. Andrews was introducing his wife to his girlfriend, it wasn't as awkward as I'd imagined.

"It's so nice to finally meet you," Mrs. Andrews said, beaming and putting out her hand.

"You, too," Mrs. Lodge said graciously, shaking her hand.

"Shall we go in, Ladies? And Jughead?"

Both women laughed, and I muttered, "Smooth." His ears reddened a little.

The four of us entered the gymnatorium together, which preserved my asexual reputation for the moment. Even when Betty found me over by the refreshments, no one knew we were together, admittedly platonically.

The theme was Fall Ball, although we hadn't yet reached the equinox, and the decorating committee had put up paper leaves in different colors. Oh, and streamers in orange and brown, like they planned to reuse them for Halloween.

"Don't say it, Jughead."

I gave her my best _Who me?_ look and said, "It's great, very minimalist."

"It's pathetic," Cheryl said in her forthright way, appearing at my other side. "Almost as pathetic as Veronica Lodge going to the dance with Kevin Keller."

I bit my tongue to keep from sharing my theory that Veronica wanted to go with Archie but had backed off from him because of Betty.

"I think they look cute together," Betty said.

Veronica was wearing a black Audrey-Hepburnish dress with a white belt, while Kevin was in a white suit with a black tie and black pocket handkerchief. Classic, elegant.

"Says the girl hanging out with someone wearing a beanie, a paisley tie, plaid, and pinstripes."

"And what fashion plate has the honor of being your escort?" I asked.

Cheryl rolled her eyes. "Hello? Hashtag InMourning. Remember? Your dad killed my brother?"

"Oh, right, sorry. You're not going to slap me again, are you?"

"And ruin another manicure?" She curled her hands like claws, showing off her rose-red polish. Then she turned on her scarlet kitten heels and headed over to her pink-clad minions. She was wearing her signature color from head to toe.

"Has she ever worn any black since the 'drowning'?" I quietly asked Betty.

"Do you want me to ask her if she's wearing black underwear?"

"Elizabeth Cooper!" I gasped. I didn't have to fake my shock.

She giggled and then broke off when Josie said into her microphone, "And now for something completely different."

The Pussycats had, with Archie on guitar, been playing instrumentals so far. From the refreshment table, I couldn't tell how nervous he was, but he didn't seem to be looking up and out at the crowd much. He kept looking down at his guitar, but maybe he was just concentrating on his music.

"As you can see, we've got a guest musician tonight. He's not a pussycat, but he's a cool cat."

Only Josie could get away with a corny line like that. And I could imagine what Reggie was whispering to the other jocks to make them laugh.

"He's co-written a duet with Valerie and they'd like to share it with all of you."

The crowd clapped politely, Betty and I louder than most, but it was Kevin and Veronica who hooted and whistled. We were too far from the stage to see details, but I was sure that Archie's ears were turning red.

Betty took her phone out of her little silver purse and gestured that we should get closer to the stage so she could take pictures. I nodded, proud of her that she was a reporter at heart, even if Archie had broken that heart.

I tried to just enjoy the performance, since it was a good song and they sang it well, once Archie got past his nervousness enough that his hands and voice stopped shaking. I could see that Archie and Valerie worked well together, but I didn't want to read too much into their smiles and harmony, the way they shared a microphone. I didn't want to worry about whether Betty was feeling jealousy or regret. It wasn't as if I could comfort her, especially in front of all those people.

Afterwards, she slipped her phone back into her purse and clapped enthusiastically. I joined in, but I wasn't the only one.

Archie turned his smile towards the two of us. Then he looked at Valerie who gave him a warmer smile and nodded. Josie frowned but nodded when he seemed to ask her permission. He set down his guitar carefully, climbed off the stage, and started to make his way over to us, but Cheryl intercepted him.

And then several things happened in quick succession. The Pussycats started playing another instrumental, this time without Archie. People started dancing, including people who hadn't been dancing earlier, like Archie and Cheryl. I didn't know whether to ask Betty, since it wasn't a slow dance, but before I could decide, she started circulating around the room, taking pictures of the crowd. I stayed where I was, just observing.

And then what I later thought of as the ricochet of cuts began. First there was the shock of Reggie cutting in on Midge and Moose. Maybe as camouflage, Moose always acted jealous and possessive when other guys talked to or even looked at Midge. (I was an exception because I used to work for her father and I wasn't supposed to be interested in girls.) Furthermore, Reggie and Moose were friends, so Midge should've been off limits. But maybe because they were friends, Moose let him dance with Midge.

Or maybe something else was going on. Moose hesitated and then headed towards Kevin and Veronica. For a moment, I thought that he was going to ask the glamorous girl from the big city for this dance. And then I realized that he was going to risk everything, his jock prestige and his safety in the closet, to ask Kevin for this dance.

Midge dancing with Reggie had caused a ripple of interest, but it was a great wave when her boyfriend, the football captain, danced with the only out gay guy in school. Veronica gave up her partner with good grace and then went off to create a tsunami of her own.

When she cut in on Archie and Cheryl, I wondered if that would bother Betty more or less than her crush dancing with her frenemy, if that was what Cheryl was. Archie was supposed to be off limits. Sisters before misters.

And then Veronica started dancing with her favorite redhead. The room spun as two beautiful rich girls spun together.

Betty was at my side with an invitation: "Do you want to go out to the hallway?"


	26. Shock Corridor

I nodded and let Betty lead me past all the happy couples, including you with that crush you'd finally hooked up with, in the most innocent sense we used that phrase in the 2010s. I was happy for you and promised myself I'd come up with a ship name later, but right then I was too distracted by Veryl. Cheronica?

How good a detective was I if I missed that ship? What clues had I ignored because I thought both girls were straight? Was flirtation with Archie just a red herring?

I couldn't tell if Betty was surprised or even interested. No, she would care. Veronica was her friend. But this wasn't necessarily the couple she was most curious about. For all I knew, she wanted to discuss Meggie. No, Ridge.

We got out to the hallway and I waited for her to lead, so I could try to follow. But then she ground to a halt. I looked in the direction she was staring and gasped.

A couple was hooking up in a less innocent sense. To be more precise, they were leaning against a locker, my locker as it happened, and sliding into what my grandfather probably would've called second base. Maybe their generation called it that, too, but in any case the middle-aged pair was making out above the shoulders. Necking I guess.

"Dios mío!" I exclaimed, even though I barely spoke Spanish and it wasn't like I'd never seen them kiss before. Maybe Betty and I were just shocked to see it at school, when anyone, including people who didn't know they were a couple, could've walked in on them.

Mrs. Lodge took her mouth off of Mr. Andrews's ear and muttered something in Spanish that I could guess the meaning of.

"It's not what you think!" Mr. Andrews protested, which made me laugh.

Betty stamped her foot but I realized she wasn't throwing a tantrum. She was using her heel to make a point.

"Echoes," I mouthed and the two adults nodded. Then the four of us went outside, even though no one would've necessarily overheard us over the Pussycats and the other sounds of the dance.

The night air was warm and clear, except for the smoke from the cigarette Ethel and Dilton were sharing.

Betty limited her scolding to "You need to move twenty feet from the building."

They scowled but slunk away. No one else seemed to be in earshot when Mr. Andrews blurted out, "We're both getting a divorce!"

"That's what Veronica said."

I realized that that must've been one of the things Veronica had dragged Betty off to discuss that evening, unless Veronica told her at some point after Betty and I talked at Pop's on Thursday.

"I'm sorry I haven't told Archie, or you, Jughead, but with all this about FP, the time wasn't right."

"It's OK," I said, wondering if I should tell them I'd seen them kiss a few days before.

"Veronica said you dated in high school."

Mrs. Lodge nodded. "Until we got caught up in other people's drama."

"But it was good before then," Mr. Andrews said. "Especially at the drive-in."

"Which is why the Twilight had to die."

I stared at Veronica's mother. "You're the anonymous buyer?"

She shook her head. "I loved the Twilight, even when the memories hurt. And Hiram had to destroy it, since he couldn't take away that bittersweetness."

"He's the anonymous buyer!"

She laughed scornfully. "He couldn't afford it, not after I gave evidence against him. But he still has powerful friends in the City, friends who owe him favors."

"Like who?"

"Jughead," Betty said, and I knew she meant that we didn't need another mystery to solve.

I coughed. "So you and Mr. Andrews used to go to drive-in movies?" I asked, as if I didn't already know.

She laughed. "And dances."

I couldn't help imagining them making out against a locker twenty-five years ago, although obviously not after listening to his son sing.

"At the Twilight," Mr. Andrews said, surprisingly dreamily.

Mrs. Lodge nodded and softly smiled, her anger fading. "Mike would let us party there on the nights they didn't show movies."

Michael Klump, Midge's dad, my former boss, the man who sold his inheritance after the dream died.

Mr. Andrews nodded. "We'd put on the radio, WEROK, 98.6 on the dial."

He pronounced each letter individually, like the people back then who said, "L.O.L.," rather than "lawl." But Mrs. Lodge murmured, "We rock," as Betty gasped, "We are OK!"

I looked at Betty and she whispered, "I'll be right back." Then she ran into the school on her silver heels.

As soon as I was alone with Mr. Andrews and Mrs. Lodge, I quietly said, "I saw you two kiss, on Wednesday when I went to talk to you, Mr. Andrews, at work. And Archie knows."

He nodded. "I'll talk to him tomorrow. Let him have tonight."

I thought he might mean that tonight he'd give his son the gift of enjoying creativity and new love, before Archie would have to face that his hopes of having his home and family restored must be abandoned. And yet, he still had a home and family, in a way I never would.

I looked at Mrs. Lodge and there was so much I wanted to ask her about the drive-in, from who the anonymous buyer might be to what the other people's drama had been. Most of all, I wanted to know what she'd been talking to my dad about at the Twilight the night before he was arrested. But I didn't feel like I could ask that in front of her boyfriend. Maybe I would ask Veronica to ask her mother.

Betty came back outside in her high-tops and gym uniform. "I'm sorry, but we've gotta run."

I wasn't sure if she meant that literally, since she was dressed for it. "Now?"

"Yes," she said simply.

"Do you want a lift? My truck's right over there."

"Thank you, Mr. Andrews, but you should stay here and enjoy Archie's music. Goodnight!" And she dashed off.

I had no idea what this was about, but I knew I had to go after her. I thought of telling Mr Andrews and Mrs. Lodge, "Don't do anything I wouldn't do," but I didn't think they'd appreciate that. Instead, I said, "Have fun!" and chased a girl.


	27. Coming Home

Not only wasn't I dressed for running, but I'd always been much less athletic than my best friends. My lifestyle as a junk-food-eating couch potato had gotten more extreme in the past year, although the last week at Archie's place obviously had been healthier. However, I did walk a lot and my legs were long, so I didn't fall too far behind Betty's ponytail that bounced more than her butt in black shorts. Yeah, I felt like a pig for noticing, but she was as purely sexy as she'd been in silver and a high bun.

After a few blocks, she smiled at me over her shoulder, not as if she knew I'd been ogling her, more of a pity smile. She slowed to a power walk to let me catch up.

"Where are we going?" I asked when I caught my breath.

"Home," she said simply.

"Then why didn't you have Mr. Andrews drive us?"

"I didn't want him to know why."

"I don't know why."

"Does Mr. Andrews still own a radio?"

"I don't know, but Archie does."

"Good. Polly took ours when she left."

"Which makes it unlikely she was kidnapped."

"Unless kidnappers wanted to make it look like she ran away."

"Right. Uh, if you want to listen to music, why didn't we just stay at the dance?"

"There's a radio show Polly started listening to in middle school."

"On WEROK?" I pronounced every letter.

"Yeah, every Saturday night, classic rock from eight to midnight."

"It's almost nine now."

"I know. We need to tune in by 9:10."

"What happens at 9:10?"

"Well, I don't know if it still happens, since Polly took our radio, but there used to be a dedication every week. I mean, it seemed to be the same dedicater and dedicatee every week, but different songs. And different names and initials, but I always felt like it was a code I couldn't break, a pattern I couldn't see. But sometimes I thought Polly understood."

"So this is about Jolly."

"About what?"

"I mean Jason and Polly."

"You have a ship name for them?" I couldn't tell if she was shocked or amused.

"Well, yeah, it helps in my notes."

"Kevin and Moose?"

"Moovin," I answered automatically.

She grinned. "Mr. Andrews and Mrs. Lodge?"

"Hed? No, sorry. Fremione?"

She laughed.

"OK, I'll have to give that one more thought."

She mischievously asked, "Veryl or Cheronica?"

Instead of answering, I asked, "Did you know about them?"

"I suspected, but I didn't know for sure until Ronnie told me in the girls' room before we went into the gymnatorium. I did know from the first day that she wasn't straight."

"Is she bi? She flirted with Archie."

"You mean because of 'Archikins'? I've heard her call Kevin 'Kevvy.' It doesn't mean anything romantic."

"But she apologized for it."

"When?"

"When she ate outside with us the first day. She said she never would've been so flirtatious if she'd known you like Archie."

We were still walking quickly, but she glanced at me puzzled, and then laughed gently. "So flirtatious with me."

Now I asked, "When?"

"Like when she complimented my ponytail."

"I thought that was just a girl compliment, like 'I wish I had her thigh gap.' "

She snorted and then sighed. "That's what I thought, but she said some other stuff later that morning, subtly flirty, that made me wonder if she was looking for more than a friend. After school, before we met up with you at Pop's, she asked if Archie was the only person I was attracted to and if I ever thought about girls. I said I'm straight, but if she isn't, we could still be friends as long as that wouldn't be hard for her. She said she really wanted to be my friend, and she probably shouldn't worry about romance anyway because she was sort of on the rebound."

"From Cheryl?" I guessed.

"Veronica told me tonight that they didn't actually date, because of the whole almost-sisters-in-law thing. But they were thrown together a lot in the City because of the matchmaking with Jason. They bickered, in a flirty rom-com kind of way, but their dads were oblivious. Then one night Cheryl kissed Veronica, who liked it but was really confused about it. Ronnie confided in her mom, and then a couple days later her dad was arrested."

"So Mrs. Lodge wasn't just trying to save a drive-in."

"Not everything is about the Twilight, Juggy."

I ignored that and said, "Cheryl was annoyed but not surprised that Veronica was at the dance with Kevin."

She nodded. "Veronica told me that Cheryl was mad when she found out that V asked Kevin. She said Cheryl texted, 'I'm not Moose.' "

"Cheryl might not be a closet case but we all thought she was straight. I mean, she kissed Archie."

"Yeah, but that was years ago, and she never really followed up on it. Not like Jolly."

"I guess Cheryl didn't have Jason's dedication."

She groaned at my pun and then quietly said, "We're almost there."

I looked around and saw we were a block from her house and Archie's. "If we don't make it in time, can't we just listen on our phones?"

"Their website is primitive and doesn't have streaming."

"We Rock? Or is it We Are OK?"

"That's what the postcard meant."

I didn't have to ask which postcard. " 'Don't worry, Betty, we'll be fine.' "

She nodded eagerly, her ponytail bouncing again. " 'We'll be fine' is the future tense of 'We are OK.' "

It sounded a little far-fetched, but then I remembered 98.6 on the radio dial. A normal temperature. Mercury, a fleet-footed god of messages. A silver goddess. Words with multiple meanings, dancing together.

"Come on," I said, breaking into a sprint "we've gotta travel on the one after 909."

And she chased me home.


	28. Radio Days

I was in a bedroom with the girl I liked when I caught the last part of "Turn Me on, I'm a Radio." It was 9:09.

I had of course been in Archie's room with Betty before, but never without Archie for more than a couple minutes. I was glad he was performing at the dance, since that meant he wouldn't come home early. Not that I thought anything would happen, but I didn't want to have to explain.

She was sitting on Archie's bed, while I was cross-legged on my mattress, fiddling with the radio and trying not to look at her bare legs dangling off the bed.

"...Next up is 'Video Killed the Radio Star,' going out from M.E. to U.B."

I looked up at Betty's face as she looked down at mine.

"From me to you," she murmured.

"Does your sister call you B?"

"No, because then I would have to call her P."

We both giggled like eight-year-olds, and then sobered as we remembered we were supposed to be solving a mystery.

"Tell me about this song, Juggy."

Her faith in my knowledge of twentieth-century pop culture was touching, but not ill placed in this case. "This was the first music video they played on MTV thirty-five years ago, back when, as my dad would say, they really were music television. The band was the Buggles and, ironically or not, they were one-hit wonders. The message is that new technology replaces old, although it's actually about video in the sense of television killing old-time radio, not about music videos killing songs on the radio. I disagree with the premise, because different formats can overlap without the new ones necessarily killing their predecessors. Drive-ins can thrive even when people can watch movies in their hands."

She smiled fondly. "Everything comes back to the Twilight."

"Of course. I'll show you the video to this song on MeTube sometime. It's pretty cool."

Her green eyes widened. "M.E. to U.B.!"

"MeTube? Does Polly have a channel?"

"No, but Jolly might." She whipped her phone out of the little silver purse that was all that was left of her outfit from the dance, the rest presumably stashed in her locker that was across the hall from mine. I thought of Mr. Andrews and Mrs. Lodge— Andge? Lodrews?— and wondered if they'd gone back into the gym.

I turned off the radio as the Buggles sang, "We can't rewind, we've gone too far," and left it on the floor as I joined Betty on Archie's bed. If Polly and/or Jason indeed posted a video and Betty found it and played it on her cell, I would need to sit next to her to watch. I realized I could get out my laptop, but I didn't want to.

"I'm getting too many Jollys," she said unsuggestively.

"Um, try it with 910."

She did, at the front and then back, but this time she got no results. "What's another ship name for them?"

"Poison? No, no I. Um, Pason I guess."

That didn't work any better.

She sighed. "Maybe this is just a dead end and I'm seeing connections that aren't there."

"What about a last name mashup?"

"Cossom?"

"Blooper," I said with authority.

"You're good at this."

"Thanks."

"What would mine and Archie's have been?"

I'd had years to think about this. "Betchie."

She gasped, "But that sounds like—"

"I'm kidding. It was Barchie."

She made a face. "That's worse. Like a bitchy barf."

"Androoper?"

She laughed, shook her head, and searched for Blooper910. And there was a channel with one video, called "Tune In." It'd been uploaded the day before and had a cow for a thumbnail.

"Does Polly like cows?"

"She likes all animals. She wants to be a vet someday. She always wanted a pet but my dad is allergic to fur."

I vaguely remembered that. "Is that why you're not clicking on it? Because it's a cute animal video instead of the solution to the mystery?"

She shook her head again. "I almost don't want the mystery to end, even though it may mean your dad's freedom. Does that make sense?"

I nodded. "This has been fun, except for my dad being in jail of course. But there are other mysteries out there."

"Like the anonymous buyer."

"Yeah."

She clicked on the video and put it on full screen so we could both see. First the camera, likely on a phone, panned over fields and then zoomed in on a barn.

"This is the farm," Polly's soft voice narrated.

Betty stepped on my foot, not hard, but like she wanted to hold my hand or grip my arm, and couldn't because she was holding her phone.

"And this is one of the farmhands."

The next shot was of a muscular redhead in overalls, milking a cow. I drew my breath in sharply and pressed my foot against Betty's from beneath.

Jason Blossom stuck his tongue out at the filmmaker, who giggled.

Then the shot switched to Polly filming herself sitting on a porch swing. She focused on her own face and said, "I wrote you a postcard, Betty, to tell you we'd be fine, but I lost it."

Betty paused the video and we looked at each other and shrugged so that our shoulders touched. Then she unpaused.

"But I guess you figured out the clues if you're watching this. You always were the smart one. God, I miss you, Little Sister! Maybe you can visit someday. I can't go back to Riverdale any time soon. Not until Jason and I turn eighteen. Even after all we've been through and even though we've been in love for years, Dad would still try to split us up, and his parents want him to marry some rich girl from the City. They'd pressure us to get divorced."

My thumb landed on the video, pausing Polly. "They're married?"

"It sounds like it."

I gently tapped the screen and moved my hand away.

"The judge understood our situation, but I'm not sure it would hold up in America."

"America?!" I exclaimed, as Betty murmured, "Situation?"

The camera panned down to what looked like a baby bump, although I could've been wrong since Polly was sitting down and wearing a loose gingham dress.

"I'm five months along now, although it might be more by the time you watch this video. It was three months when I left. I wish I could've told you, because you were my best friend, besides Jason of course. But I knew Mom would relentlessly grill you if she thought you knew anything. I knew you would have enough crap to deal with. I'm very sorry, because I'm the big sister and I'm supposed to protect you, but you're a big girl now and I think you can take care of yourself. Besides, I've got someone totally helpless I need to take care of now." She put her hand on her stomach.

Betty paused on that image and whispered, "I'm going to be an aunt."

That part hadn't sunk in for me yet. I was still processing that Polly and Jason were going to be parents, on a farm in another country. "Congratulations," I murmured, making Betty laugh without trying.

She unpaused and her sister continued, "...Jason wanted to do the right thing, even if we had to do wrong things first." The camera moved back up to her face. "I told him the drowning story was crazy, but he wanted to create confusion, so people wouldn't know what to believe. He said that borrowing the car from his grandmother would be safe, because people think she's not all there. I was worried that someone would trace the car, even across the border, but I didn't have any other getaway plan. And then Mr. Jones complicated things."

Our thumbs almost collided, landing on Polly's face.

"Do you think she means your dad's confession?"

I moved my hand away. "Maybe, but this feels like something else, something earlier."

She nodded and let more of the video play out.

"...The morning of July 4th, I took the earliest bus to Valedale. I was the only passenger when the bus left Riverdale, but we picked someone up in Greendale. I was shocked when Jason got on and sat a few seats ahead of me, but I tried not to show it. We texted and he explained that his grandmother's car wasn't where she'd promised that a friend would leave it. She'd told Jason that she wouldn't tell the friend why she wanted her car left on the edge of the Greendale Woods, but it looked like the friend had bailed. The bus wasn't going past Valedale that day...."

Betty paused again to ask, "Why did you and Archie stop in Greendale? You left the day before the holiday, so it's not like the bus schedule was any worse than on the 4th."

"Well, the 3rd was a Sunday, so the service still wasn't great. And we didn't count Valedale. There's nothing there, except a block of businesses and a few houses."

She nodded and tapped the video again.

"...We didn't have a plan for what to do next. Hitchhiking was dangerous and we might be recognized. But we didn't have another way out of Valedale, at least not until after the holiday weekend. And then, the Impala pulled up."

I wanted to pause the video to react to that, or to draw out the moment of not knowing for sure who was driving the car, but I kept my hand to myself this time.

"The driver parked the car and waved us over. He was wearing a hoodie and sunglasses, so we couldn't see his face. We were suspicious but curious, so we went to the car. He rolled down his window and growled, 'Get in.' And I know it sounds crazy, but we did, both in the backseat. Then he walked over to the bus driver, who was smoking a cigarette. He said something we couldn't hear and handed the driver an envelope. The driver, I mean the bus driver, nodded, and the Impala driver came back and got behind the wheel again. 'Buckle up, Kids,' he said in a gravelly voice, 'I've promised Rosie I'd get you there safely.' "

Betty paused. "It was your dad. 'Forsythe' was Nana Blossom's friend."

I nodded. "Can you rewind, I mean go back, a bit? I'm not sure of the timestamp. But the envelope part."

"Sure." She slid the time-measure thingy back a bit, picking up at the word "cigarette" and then freezing her sister again after "safely." She asked, "What was in the envelope?"

"A bribe. To keep him from coming forward when two local teens disappeared."

She nodded and continued with the video. "...We fastened our seatbelts and he drove in the opposite direction from Greendale. Jason asked, 'Where are you taking us?' and the man asked, 'Where do you want to go?' We looked at each other, because we'd talked about different places, but then we nodded and Jason said, 'The border.' The man said, 'I hope you don't mean Mexico, because I don't want to stop for gas.' 'Canada,' I said and the man nodded. He drove in silence until Jason asked, 'Why are you doing this?' The man said, 'How else is your grandmother going to get her car back?' and then he put on the radio, tuned to some death-metal station that I doubt Nana Blossom would ever listen to."

I snorted, picturing that.

"None of us spoke again, although Jason and I texted until our phones needed recharging, and there was no place to plug in in such an old car. We weren't really scared. We were excited about this adventure, in a different way than when Jason was going to drive the Impala. And then the man pulled over to the side of the road and said he, um, had to take a leak "

I laughed, since that was my dad putting it politely.

"As soon as the man went off to the bushes, leaving the keys in the ignition, Jason unbuckled and climbed into the front seat. I said we couldn't just abandon the man in the middle of nowhere, especially if he was Nana Rose's friend. We argued about it, since the guy was weird and dodgy, but not necessarily dangerous. Then he came back to the car and got in on the front right side. He said, 'Good idea, we can split the driving. I'll ride shotgun and read the map.' "

"Shotgun," I murmured, remembering something he'd recently said to me. Betty looked at me as if wondering if she should pause, but I shook my head.

"Jason ended up driving to the border and a little beyond. None of us said much, except the man giving directions. I'd brought a backpack with our stuff, mine and Jason's, as much as I could fit. We figured it would draw less attention than a suitcase. I took out Jason's letterman jacket and used it as a pillow as I rested my head against the window, watching the scenery go by, trying not to fall asleep, although I'd left home before dawn. I was starting to drift off when the man asked what our plan was. We didn't really have one, just to find jobs and try not to get caught. When Jason admitted that, the man shook his head and gave Jason directions to a farm, this farm. But he didn't come in with us. He said to tell them FP sent us. The initials didn't mean anything to me, but Jason's eyes widened and he said, 'Yes, Sir.' "

I paused Betty's phone. "Your sister didn't know my dad's name?"

"Well, it's not his name, is it? They're his first and middle initials, and we mostly think of him as Mr. Jones, like you think of our dad as Mr. Cooper rather than Hal."

"OK, but why did Jason react like that?"

"His mom talks about your dad. Cheryl said her mom said your dad was a player."

I felt like blushing as I played the next part of the video.

"...I was still sleepy and sort of out of it when I got out of the car, so I forgot Jason's jacket. And I think your postcard slipped out when I unzipped the backpack. I kept meaning to get you another one, but we've been so caught up in our life here and I wasn't sure how to write to you without giving away our location with the postmark. Anyway, I think videos are the best way to reach you right now, although I don't know how often I can upload. Of course, I don't know what's going to happen now that FP Jones has confessed to Jason's murder."

I paused the video again. "So she knows about that, not just my dad's arrest."

"It's big enough news, and they probably aren't that many miles away from our part of upstate."

I nodded and unpaused.

"...I don't know why he's making that sacrifice for us, even if he's friends with Nana Rose. Jason and I have talked it over and, Betty, if you need to, you can share this video with the police."

This time, Betty paused. "Should we?"

"Let's talk about it after we finish the video."

She nodded and played some more, although I could see there wasn't much left of it. Now we heard Jason asking, "Have you told her about the twins?"

Polly made a face. Jason laughed and came into view, snuggling up against her on the porch swing.

"Twins run in Jason's family," she told the camera.

"Yeah, like my dad and my uncle, and me and Cheryl. Hey, Betty, tell Cher I'm OK and happy." He put one hand on Polly's stomach and kissed her cheek.

"I love you," she whispered and she tilted her head.

"Hey," said a new voice, older, male, probably Canadian, "you two are supposed to be working, not canoodling."

"Sorry, Sir," they both said, and the video ended.

Betty turned off her phone and slipped it back into her silver bag. She looked at me and asked, "What do you think?"

I thought that that was a lot to process, but what I said was, "I've never heard Polly talk so much."

In a fond but amused tone, Betty said, "Oh, Juggy!" Then she tilted her head, leaned in, and kissed me.


	29. Back to the Future

As Betty's lips touched mine, I was of course surprised. Where was this coming from? As far as I knew, she was still hung up on Archie, and I didn't want to be her rebound. So, much as I wanted to close my eyes and kiss back, I couldn't let myself go.

Besides, I noticed something in my peripheral vision. For the first time all week, the shade was up in Betty's window across from Archie's. I moved my head away from hers, to stop the kiss and get a better look.

"Betty, not to freak you out, but your mom is glaring at me."

Her head whipped around so fast her ponytail grazed my face. "Oh, crap!" She grabbed her silver bag and leapt off the bed. As she dashed out of Archie's bedroom, I glanced over at her bedroom, which was now empty.

I got to my feet and went out to the hallway. From the top of the stairs I called down to her at the foot, "Bets, wait!"

She looked up at me. "Yes?"

"What are you going to tell her?"

"About Polly?"

I tried not to wince. I knew that a kiss was nothing compared to Polly's pregnancy by and marriage to a guy who was supposed to be dead, but it mattered to me and I hoped to Betty.

"I'm sorry, Juggy. The kiss—" She broke off as someone loudly knocked on the front door.

"I'll get it," I said, "since I sort of live here." I went down the stairs, but Betty put her hand on my arm when I reached her.

"I'm going to tell her about the video," she whispered.

I nodded. My impression was that it was Mr. Cooper who had more of a problem with the Blossoms, not that I expected Mrs. Cooper to be thrilled about the news.

Betty took her hand away and stepped aside. I went to the door and opened it, to both her parents. That threw me because, while Mr. Cooper disapproved of me a lot less than his wife, he was going to be a lot angrier about his other daughter's involvement with Jason Blossom.

"Young Lady, you are coming home, right this minute," Mrs. Cooper said.

"Wait, Mom, I need to tell you something."

"Oh my God, you're pregnant!" she exclaimed, then glared at me again.

"Not me," Betty said quietly.

"Polly?" Mrs. Cooper whispered, then looked over her shoulder as if expecting the neighbors to be eavesdropping, although she was the biggest gossip in the neighborhood.

"What's going on?" Mr. Cooper asked.

"Hal, close the door."

He did but then startled the rest of us by asking in a quiet but menacing tone, "Betty, have you been in touch with your sister all this time?"

"N— no," Betty faltered. "I'm not in touch with her now. But I found a video she posted."

"What kind of video?" her mother asked, as if she expected it to be porn.

"It shows her living with Jason on a farm."

"A farm?!" Mrs. Cooper cried, as if that was the weirdest part, while her husband whispered, "Jason is alive?"

"Yes, and they're married."

"NO!" Mr. Cooper shouted, making me and Betty flinch.

"Hal," his wife said hesitantly, "if she's pregnant—"

"Alice, you know that makes it worse."

"Dad, I know she's only sixteen but—"

He shook his head. "Age has nothing to do with it. Polly never should've gotten involved with that boy."

"Because he's rich?"

"No, because they're cousins!"

Betty was speechless, but I burst out with, "Whoa, Nana Blossom slept with your dad, Mrs. Cooper? Or was it your mom with Jason's grandfather?"

"Not first cousins, Jughead," she said irritably.

"My grandmother, Betty and Polly's great-grandmother, was a Blossom, the sister of Clifford's grandfather. But the Blossoms disinherited her because they thought she 'married beneath her.' "

I thought of the movie _Kind Hearts and Coronets_ but refrained from mentioning it, especially since it involves a killing spree.

"So Jason and Polly are, what, third cousins?"

I again bit my tongue, this time to not point out that such a union was legal in New York state, and probably in Canada.

"Yes, but I don't think they know. When I thought he'd died, I hoped it was over and she'd come home from wherever she'd run off to. But now— Betty, where is the video posted?"

She hesitated but said, "It's at MeTube. On the channel 910Blooper."

I tried not to react to her moving the numbers to the front of the name. It would slow him down some but gave her plausible deniability. She could claim later that she'd just misremembered, without it seeming like she lied.

"Great. I'll show it to Sheriff Keller and we can get Polly back, and get your dad out of jail, Jughead."

"Thanks, Mr. Cooper." I had the feeling that it wasn't that simple, for either of those things.

"Alice, are you coming?"

"I'll catch up with you later, Hal. I'd like to have a word with these two."

He looked like, one, he'd momentarily forgotten whatever his wife had told him she'd seen from the window, and two, he felt sorry for us. His mind was understandably more on his older daughter. He nodded and left.

Then his wife gestured that the three of us should adjourn to the living room. We obeyed, but Betty and I both sat on the couch. Not close, but it was still a gesture that we were in this together, whatever this was.

Mrs. Cooper remained standing as she flicked on the light and began, "I want to talk to you about teenage hormones."

"Mom, it was just a little kiss."

Betty's mother waved her hand as if she had much more to say. "When I was in high school, I fell in with the wrong crowd."

I immediately imagined an after-school special involving drugs, alcohol, and other television-friendly debauchery.

"Let me guess," Betty said. "You were a good girl corrupted by the bad kids."

Mrs. Cooper shook her head. "I was a bad girl who started hanging out with nerds." Seeing the surprise on our faces, she smiled a little and said, "Oh, I'm sure they thought they were the cool kids. Like Fred Andrews, the football star who was lead guitar in a band. But he wasn't half as cool as his bassist, FP Jones."

I glanced over at Betty to see if she was as surprised as I was. She looked as if she was about to ask something and then bit her tongue.

"He had a reputation as a ladies' man, and he was definitely a big flirt, but he'd never really had a serious girlfriend before. As for me, well, let's just say that when we got together, neither of us was a virgin."

"Mom!" Betty pleaded, but Mrs. Cooper continued.

"It was a stormy, passionate relationship. Big fights and then intense makeups. Much of this played out at the dance parties Mikey Klump's father let him throw at the Twilight Drive-in."

Now I was biting my tongue.

"The nerdy crowd watched like it was a movie, trying not to take sides, until the night that he made a play for Katy Keene, Claudius Blossom's girlfriend."

"Claudius dated Midge's mom?" Betty said, as if that was a more surprising relationship than her own mom and my dad. But maybe it was easier to react to something more distant to us.

"Yes, the Blossom brothers liked to party with us as mild rebellion against their father, although they were never part of the inner circle. Clifford brought Penelope, and Claudius brought Katy. Well, until FP went after her and she fell for him. He was just trying to make me jealous, but she thought he meant something by it. Claude dumped her, and he, Clifford, and Penelope stopped slumming. And I broke up with FP for what I thought would be the last time. He dropped Katy when he was bored with her and then came crawling back to me, but by then I had goals beyond having fun."

"Goals?" Betty repeated.

"Yes. I'd always been a good writer and Mrs. Grundy had recently asked me to join the staff of _The Blue and Gold._ I really enjoyed being a reporter and I decided I would pull up my grades, go to college, and major in journalism. And I did."

"And you met Dad."

Mrs. Cooper nodded. "Hal Cooper was different from FP and the other boys I dated in high school. Serious and shy, but with a temper if you pushed him too far. FP's bark was always worse than his bite, but I learned what I could and couldn't do around Hal, especially since I now had a good reputation."

"Did you love him?" Betty asked quietly.

"I still love your father. He's given me the security and stability that I never had growing up."

I wasn't sure how that fit in with Mr. Cooper's temper, but I was trying to keep my mouth shut.

"We married after graduation and I thought we could really begin a new life together. But then he said he wanted to move to my hometown and buy their failing newspaper. I didn't know then that he had Riverdale connections of his own, that he'd grown up listening to his grandmother's bitter tales about her family. He just said that he thought it would be fun to run a newspaper."

I thought of _Citizen Kane_ but didn't say that.

"We bought the newspaper and a house, the house next door to where Fred Andrews grew up and still lived, having given up his own dreams of college, and football and music, to take care of his sick widowed father and run the family's construction business. I thought he might give away my past, but he just admitted to Hal that we'd gone to school together. The truth was, the inner circle had broken and even those who remained in Riverdale didn't talk much about the past."

I realized that that was true of my dad, and I hadn't understood why before.

"I'd been married about a year, no longer a newlywed, when I went to cover a trial. It was vandalism, and the accused had a lawyer who got the Serpents off for most of their petty crimes."

I knew of this lawyer, Penny Peabody, and I would've asked her to defend my dad, but I'd doubted she'd take on a case where the suspect confessed to murder when he was "only" charged with kidnapping.

"I hadn't seen him in five years, and he was now a man, a man who looked like he'd only shaved for court and put on his father's ridiculous paisley tie as a mockery of the justice system. When I commented that he should buy a new tie, he told me I was still hot, even though I had, had changed."

I didn't have to look over at Betty to know that she was as embarrassed and yet as intrigued by this story as I was. In her own way, Alice Cooper was as much of a performer as Kevin Keller or Cheryl Blossom.

"After that, well, I knew it was wrong, but that made it more exciting. Sometimes I saw him when Hal thought I was out covering a story, and other times my cover story was that I was having a girls' night out with Fred's new wife. Mary thought that if I was unhappy with Hal, I should get a divorce. She didn't understand that I was happy with Hal as my husband, FP as my lover. I continued to sleep with Hal, even though we never had the passion that FP and I had."

I could see sense Betty wincing as I did, but her mother continued ruthlessly on.

"When I got pregnant, I genuinely didn't know who the father was."

Betty gasped and my eyes widened. Was this going where I thought it was?

"I knew Hal was more reliable, would make a better father. So I ended it with FP, telling him I was tired of the risk."

I couldn't help blurting out, "You didn't tell him he might be Polly's dad?"

"Oh, he wondered later, but I insisted that Hal was the father. Of course, when Polly was a baby, I found out what her blood type was and I realized Hal wasn't the biological father."

"You know Mr. Jones's blood type?"

"He was my lab partner in Professor Flootsnoot's Biology II class."

I decided I probably wouldn't ask the teacher about that when I interviewed him.

"So you're telling us all this to prove that Dad's wrong about Polly and Jason being third cousins?"

"No, I'm telling you all this to prove how dangerous teenage hormones are. You may've thought that was just a harmless little kiss, Elizabeth, but you don't know where it might lead."

I was about to point out that my dad got her pregnant when they were in their twenties, not their teens, but I heard a key turning in the front door. It was a really bad moment for Mr. Andrews to come home, but I also wasn't ready to face Archie before I knew why Betty kissed me.

"Anybody home?" Mrs. Andrews called.

"We're in here, Mary."

"Alice?" Mrs. Andrews looked puzzled to see her in the living room, and then she noticed me and Betty on the couch. "Betty, what happened to your lovely silver dress?" She looked at me as if I were responsible.

"I changed when I left the dance early."

Mrs. Andrews nodded. "Yes, I can't wait to get out of these heels, so I was glad when the Klumps offered me a lift. Fred and, um, wanted to stay and enjoy the music."

I guess she didn't want to talk about her husband and his old girlfriend in front of someone as gossipy as her old neighbor. Or maybe she was thinking of another Riverdale couple who reunited after high school.

"I'm afraid you'll have to wait a little longer, Mary. We need to visit your client tonight."

Mrs. Andrews blinked. "What?"

"I'll explain on the way. You two." Her head turned towards the couch again. "When I return, I'd better not find you in the same house."

"Yes, Mother."

Mrs. Cooper seemed to be studying her daughter, as if trying to determine how much bitterness was beneath the humble sweetness. Then she hooked her arm through Mrs. Andrews's and said, "Come on, Wilma, let's go."

It wasn't until after the door slammed that Betty murmured, "Wilma?"

"As in Wilma Flintstone, red-haired wife of Fred."

"Wait, does that make my mom Betty?"

I snorted. "Sorry."

She shook her head. "Can we go somewhere and talk?"

"Pop's?"

"I mean somewhere where we won't be interrupted."

"Oh, uh, the projection booth?"

She smiled a little. "It always comes back to the Twilight."


	30. A Walk to Remember

Betty and I hadn't said anything since I came downstairs in sweats and sneakers and she said, "You've changed," and I made her laugh with "Haven't we all?" For me, it was a matter of not knowing where to start, and wondering if I should wait until we had the privacy of a condemned drive-in.

When we were a couple blocks past her house, I quietly said, "You know what the worst part of your mom's story is?"

"That she cheated on my dad? That she pretended to him, your dad, and everyone that he was Polly's real dad? That you and I have a half-sister in common?"

"No, that the ship name is Falice."

She let out a gasping laugh and then shook her head.

More seriously, I said, "I'm sorry for what she did to your family, but my dad is tough and he could take it. As for me, obviously it's a shock, but I've always liked Polly and I know she's been a good sister to you."

"But this whole thing makes it weird for us."

"Is there an us?"

"Well, you know, there's you and me."

"Betty, forgive my timing, but why did you kiss me?"

"Well, we were sitting close on a bed and I'd just heard an amazing story, where I'm not only an aunt but the solution to the mystery has raised lots of new questions."

"So it was the situation, not the company?"

"No, that's not it."

"Bets, I don't want to be your rebound."

"You're not!"

"Then what am I?"

"You're one of my best friends."

"Like Archie?"

"No, they've always been very different friendships."

"Yeah, because you have a crush on him."

"Maybe I have a crush on you, too."

I stopped walking. "Maybe?''

She looked at me and said, "Can we keep walking?"

"OK." I had the feeling that this was going to take as long as her mother's and sister's stories, but I didn't mind.

"At first, we were just three kids growing up together. When I started to be interested in boys, you were the two I liked best, and not just as friends. But you didn't seem interested in girls, while Archie was. So I tried not to think about you that way, or at least not to show it. And eventually you came out as asexual and aromantic, so I tried to be respectful of that. But lately, I've wondered if that's true."

I swallowed. "Well, yeah, this summer I started figuring out my feelings, including that I had them."

She smiled and then sighed. "At first I thought you might like Cheryl or Veronica."

"What, are you crazy?"

This time she laughed.

"Sorry, I know they're your cousin and your new best friend, but they both annoy the crap out of me."

"Yes, but when you argued with them, I thought maybe it was like banter in a romcom."

"No, I have enough stress in my life."

She laughed again. "Well, anyway, after Archie rejected me, I started to wonder if you might be interested in me, especially after you stroked my hair. But you might've just done that to go along with Kevin, and you could do it because it didn't mean anything to you. And I did wonder if I was just projecting or on the rebound or something. Even though I've known you all my life, I can't always read you. And the last thing I wanted was for you to reject me right after Archie did."

I knew I should tell her that her feelings weren't unrequited, but I wanted to hear her side of things first. So I asked, "Why did you ask me to the dance?"

"Veronica thought I should."

"After pushing you to confess to Archie?"

"I like her nudging me and these were things I wanted to do but were easier with support. And I knew you and I would have fun as friends no matter what."

"Why did you kiss me?" I asked again.

"Because I hoped you'd kiss back. And if you didn't, well, at least I could tell myself it was because you don't care about romance, even if you keep coming up with ship names."

"Jetty," I murmured.

"What?" She stopped walking, so I did, too.

"Our ship name."

She grinned. "So you wanted to kiss me back? I mean if my mom hadn't been glaring at you and if you weren't worried I'm hung up on Archie."

I nodded. "I've been wanting to kiss you at least since the summer, especially right at this moment. But, call me crazy, but I want to wait until we get to the Twilight."

"OK."

We started walking again.

"So what are the new questions Polly's solution raised?" I asked after a minute, sort of wishing I'd brought my laptop, although I was trying to travel light.

"Well, one I didn't have right after we watched the video is, does your dad know or at least still suspect he's Polly's biological father?"

"I think so. I mean it is possible he was just helping her and Jason to make his unlikely friend 'Rosie' happy, but, well, he must've known your mom isn't the most honest person in the world."

She nodded, unoffended. "And the next question is, did he do it to make his daughter happy, or was it also because he knew he was going to become a grandfather?"

"Shotgun," I answered.

"Huh?"

"When I visited my dad, I asked him how he killed Jason, and that was his one-word answer. So when we watched the video, I thought it had to do with him riding shotgun when Jason drove. But maybe it was a little joke to himself about a shotgun wedding, even though the elopement seems to have been Jason's idea."

Betty nodded again. "Your dad at least wanted to help them escape, which is why he framed himself for murder."

"Yeah, but why, other than to confuse everyone, would he do it in such a clumsy way?"

"Clumsy?"

"Well, for one thing, why did the car turn up two months later, or at all?"

"Maybe he originally planned to sell it, figuring Nana Blossom wouldn't remember it, but then he decided it could be recognized too easily, so then he ditched it."

I shook my head. "I think he would've known from the start that he couldn't get away with that. And there are odd details, like how Jason's jacket got from the backseat, where Polly was using it as a pillow, to the front seat, where Moose found it."

"And the postcard being mailed weeks later, from The City."

"Right, and the mysterious Canadian farmer or farmers that is or are good enough friends to take in two teenage runaways just on my dad's word, but he couldn't take the time to even say hello after coming all that way."

"Maybe he'll talk to you about all this now, or at least to his lawyer."

"That's another thing. Did Mrs. Andrews know or suspect he's Polly's biological father before she agreed to be his lawyer?"

"Hm, maybe? She knew about the affair and she was my mom's friend and neighbor. In any case, your dad is not only the father of her son's best friend but also the former best friend of her husband."

"Yeah, but if she knew about Polly, that would give her extra motivation. And now your mom is telling her, if she didn't know already, that the 'murder victim' is her client's son-in-law."

"And the father of the confessed killer's future grandchild or grandchildren."

I shook my head. "I'm still processing that. I'm going to be an uncle!"

She grinned again. "Uncle Jughead."

"Yeah, and Jellybean is going to be an aunt."

"Are you going to tell her?"

I frowned. "I haven't even talked to her about the arrest yet, although I'm sure she and my mom have heard about it on the news by now, if Polly has."

"They haven't contacted you?"

"No."

She took my hand. I squeezed hers. We walked the rest of the way in silence, hand in hand.


	31. A Little Romance

When we reached the marquee, I saw that all the words had been stolen except "end" and "gone." I muttered, "Bunch of savages in this town."

Betty got my _Clerks_ reference and laughed.

I leaned in and kissed her. I stroked her hair because she seemed to like that the Saturday before. (I was glad she'd taken it out of the bun and put it in the usual ponytail while I was getting Archie's radio.) She kissed back, her soft lips somehow both fluid and firm. And she tasted so sweet, even sweeter than I'd imagined.

When it ended I let out a sigh and she smiled.

"I thought you wanted to wait until we got to the projection booth."

"We can kiss there, too. If you want."

"What do you want, Juggy?"

"I want to hold you all night," I breathed. When she blushed, I quickly added, "I don't mean—"

She took my hand again. "Let's go sit and talk."

I swallowed, nodded, and led the way to the projection booth.

"It's like a ghost town," she whispered, as we went down the dirt road and past the snack bar.

I nodded again, thinking of all the layers of memories, some of which I'd learned about that night.

I didn't notice any other new signs of vandalism, not since Wednesday afternoon. I'd been half afraid that the projection booth would be trashed. I'd left it unlocked for the same reason that when I was a kid my father never locked our car. He'd rather replace CDs than a car door, and even though Mr. Andrews would be tearing down the drive-in soon, I didn't want someone breaking into the booth just for a DVD player, some old movies and a couch.

I let go of Betty's hand as we reached the steps. I went up first, opened the door, turned on the light, and looked around. It had suddenly occurred to me that there might be a homeless person sleeping there. After all, I slept there for a year.

I sat down on the vacant couch. Betty came up, closed the door behind her, and sat close enough that we could hold hands, but far enough apart that we could see each other's face.

I squeezed her hand as I said, "It feels good to finally touch you."

"Yes," she whispered.

"And I want to do more with you, if you want to, but I'm not in any hurry. What I meant before is, I really do want to hold you all night, just hold you in my arms while we sleep, but it doesn't have to be tonight."

"Well, my mom did say she didn't want to catch us in the same house. But this isn't exactly a house, is it?" she added mischievously.

"What about your dad? What if he thinks you've run off like Polly did?"

She frowned. "He might not come home tonight himself, not after he finds out about my mom's affair."

I kissed her cheek. "I'm sorry, Bets."

She shook her head. "Juggy, can we dance?"

I laughed in surprise. "What?"

"We didn't get to dance tonight. Are there any CDs you can play on the DVD player?"

"Uh, I can check."

I didn't listen to CDs much by that point, but that didn't mean there might not be some in the booth. If not, I was willing to sing to make Betty happy and, unlike Archie, I was not as musical as my father.

"Is this OK?" I asked, when I held up the _Valley Girl_ soundtrack.

"Fer sure," she said, making me smile.

"I Melt with You" was perfect for slow dancing, but "Eaten by the Monster of Love" made us giggle.

After a few songs, I turned off the music and we ended up back on the couch, hugging and kissing. Holding each other close while dancing made us want to hold each other close sitting down. This time our tongues took turns licking each other's lips, until we opened for each other and began to taste inside each other's mouth.

Meanwhile, our hands were still shy but getting bolder. We stroked each other's face, her skin so soft under my fingertips, her fingertips so tender on my skin.

When we took a break from kissing, she snuggled up against me, my arm around her shoulder.

"This is so nice," she murmured.

"Yeah," I whispered.

"Can I stay all night?"

"You want to?"

"Yes."

"Well, lock up when you leave."

She elbowed me, not too hard, and then we both laughed and kissed some more.

When we resurfaced again, she said, "I don't know how to ask this without embarrassing both of us."

"Ask anyway."

"Well, is it that you're romantic but asexual? Or something else?"

"Well, I used to think of myself as separate from everyone, even the people I cared about, like you, Archie, and Jellybean. But, Betty, you make me want to connect, break through barriers. We wouldn't have to touch, I mean as more than friends, but I wanted to, and now I want to keep touching you. It's not lust though, because it's emotional as well as physical. And even if I were asexual, it wouldn't necessarily mean I had no desire, or couldn't enjoy sex."

She blushed but nodded. "I want to take it slow, but when we're both ready, I want to use protection."

Now I blushed and nodded. "Of course."

Neither of us mentioned her mother's unintended pregnancy, but she said, "Polly really did want to be a vet."

"Maybe she still can, someday."

Betty shook her head. "Now she might not even go to college."

"It'll be harder but she might, if she really wants to."

She smiled a little. "I thought you were a cynic."

"Not about my sisters."

She took my hand again and squeezed it, so I squeezed back.

We sat in silence for awhile, sort of talked out. Then we both yawned.

"It's been an eventful evening," I said.

"Yeah. Does this couch fold out to a bed?"

"No, it's just a couch. Is that OK?"

"Yeah, but you'll have to spoon me."

"Well, if you insist."

She laughed and then I cupped her face in both hands, kissing her again, just her sweet lips this time, although I lightly licked them, too.

She kissed back, but when I stopped, she said, "Juggy, if we keep kissing, we'll never get any sleep."

I knew she was right, although I would've been happy to kiss her all night. So I said, "Stand up."

She did and then I took off my shoes and lay down on the couch, looking up at her beauty by the dim bulb overhead. She smiled but turned out the light. Then she felt her way back to me before our eyes adjusted to the dark. She knelt beside the couch and softly kissed me, at first landing on my nose, which made us both laugh. Then she found my lips, teasing them with her own and her tongue. I kissed back, but I mostly let her take the lead.

When she stopped, I stroked her hair, and asked, "Do you sleep in your ponytail?"

"Do you sleep in your hat?"

"I do everything in my hat."

She laughed, then said, "I don't want my hair to get in your way when we spoon."

"I don't mind."

"You do it then."

Mostly by touch, I loosened her hair, feeling it swirl around my hands. I kept the rubber band looped around my thumb.

Then she lay down with her back to me. I wanted to put my arms around her, but first I reached up, took off my hat, and handed it to her.

She laughed again and said, "Thank you."

"You're welcome, but I want it back in the morning."

"Of course."

I put my arms around her stomach and bent my legs to better fit hers and the couch. We both sighed happily.

Wanting to be a good host, I asked, "Are you comfortable?"

"Yeah, the couch isn't bad, and it'll be easier to sleep in my gym uniform than my dress."

"Yeah, I'm glad I took off that cursed paisley tie."

She stroked my bandless hand with her hatless hand, and I expected her to say something about our parents' relationship, but instead she said, "I know it sounds mental, but sometimes I have more fun vegging out than when I go partying. Maybe because my party clothes are so binding."

I got the _Clueless_ reference and chuckled. I murmured, "I love you."

She stiffened in my arms. "What did you just say?"

I yawned. "Nothing, I'm asleep."

I could feel her shaking her head but then her body relaxed against mine. "Goodnight, Jughead."

"Goodnight, Betty."

I didn't think I'd be able to sleep, tired though I was, but the sound of Betty's breathing lulled me until I drifted off.


	32. Breaking Dawn

I didn't dream that night, but when I woke, it was hard to know what was real. I recognized the feel of the couch, but Betty's softness was still so new to me. That I'd imagined waking up with her so many times only made it more unbelievable that she was actually there.

It was light out but didn't feel too late in the morning. Her hair was shining golden.

"Betty, are you awake?" I whispered, hoping I wouldn't startle her.

She yawned. "Yeah, you snore a little."

"I'm sorry."

"You're not any worse than Polly."

"I guess it runs in the family."

She chuckled. "Yeah."

I kissed her cheek. "Thank you for staying here."

"Thank you for letting me."

"I'd say any time, but I can't after tomorrow."

"Yeah. What time is it?"

"I don't know. I never wear a watch and I left my phone back at Archie's since these sweats don't have pockets."

"I'll check my phone."

I stroked the bottom of her gym shirt, over her stomach, and whispered in her ear, "Do you have to?"

"Yes, if we want to know how long we have until my parents send Sheriff Keller after me."

I sighed and let go. She got to her stocking feet and I caught my breath at how wild and lovely her hair looked.

She turned to face me again, now frowning. "Bedhead, right?"

"Is that what you want our ship name to be?"

She rolled her eyes. "Where's my rubber band?"

I looked at my hand but it must've come off in the night. I sat up. "I'll look for it. Where's my hat?"

She laughed and said, "Talk about bedhead!"

I ran a hand over my head and could feel my hair sticking up in different directions. "That's why I need my hat."

"It's on top of the DVD player."

"How did it get there?"

"I threw it."

"In the dark, lying down with my arms around you?"

"Well, in the middle of the night, you shifted in your sleep, and I woke up, still holding your hat. So I threw it over there to keep from dropping it on the floor."

"OK, but how did you get that kind of accuracy in the dark from that angle?"

She shrugged. "You know I've always been kind of a jock." She turned away and got my hat, but she also got her silver purse, which was hanging on the doorknob. She came back to the couch and put the hat on my head.

"Thanks."

We kissed lightly and then she got out her phone. She pressed the on button and snuggled against me as we waited for it to get to the home screen and show us the time.

It turned out to be seven, but we were distracted by the texts she'd missed.

"Do you want some privacy?" I offered.

"No, it's OK."

"Anything from your parents? Or Polly?"

"I don't think so. Oh, there's Archie." She glanced at me and I nodded. So we silently read his texts together.

**Hey, Betty, sorry to bother you but Jughead isn't answering his phone. My dad says you two left early. I hope everything's OK.**

Then hours later, **Nm. Talked to my mom. Tell Jughead hi and I'll talk to him when he gets home.**

We both blushed a little, although Archie hadn't teased her, or indirectly me.

And then there was Kevin's text:

**OMG, Girl, where r u??? We have so much to talk about! Veronica and Cheryl. Me and Moose! You and Colden? V's mom and A's dad!!!**

Betty and I both laughed, and then she clicked on Veronica's text:

**B, we need to talk soon. Did things work out with you and J? C and I are happy to go public, although her parents, unlike my mom, will freak.**

I couldn't help saying, "I think Mr. and Mrs. Blossom are gonna be a little distracted by the resurrection of their son."

Betty nodded. "I wonder what's happening with Jason and Polly. I mean how many people know they're alive and married in Canada."

"Do you want to check news sites or something?"

She shook her head. "Not yet. I want some more alone time with you."

I grinned, but then a text from Cheryl popped up:

**Call me, Cuz. Hashtag FamilyMatters.**

I had to laugh out loud, including at her spelling out "hashtag." "Does that make me Urkel?"

Betty powered off her phone, slipped it back in her purse, said, "Definitely not," and kissed me.

I kissed back of course and wanted to kiss her all day, although I knew eventually we'd have to leave.

But then someone pounded on the door. We pulled apart and looked at each other. It seemed unlikely it was her mom. It could've been her dad, or Sheriff Keller, with or without her mom. On the other hand, it could've been Mr. Klump, annoyed that I was still trespassing even after I no longer worked there.

Neither of us spoke and I think we were both hoping that whoever it was would just go away.

Then came the gravelly voice saying, "Open up, Son." And it wasn't Sheriff Keller.


	33. Father of the Bride

"Where's my rubber band?" Betty asked again, this time in a whisper.

I shook my head. I'd been distracted earlier, mostly by Betty herself, but I doubted my dad cared what her hair looked like.

I was wrong. After I called, "It's unlocked," my dad came in and looked over at the couch, his haunted brown eyes widening. I could tell it wasn't just the shininess of Betty's hair that drew his attention to it.

Then he shook his head as if to clear it. "Sorry, a little flashback there."

I didn't think I looked much like my dad then, although if I'd had facial hair, there might've been some resemblance to his unshaven roughness. But I did look remarkably like my dad at fifteen. And, although at that point I don't think I'd ever seen a picture of teenage Alice Smith, I suddenly knew with conviction that she must've strongly resembled her younger daughter, especially when Betty had her hair loose and wild.

If it was weird for me and Betty to find out that my dad and her mom had been a couple, it was weird in a different way for them to find out about us. We were obviously brand new as an item, not even twelve hours old, and we'd done less physically than probably either of them suspected. But we'd always had a special connection, and that must've been hard for them to deal with, considering their own rocky history.

"I'd ask you to sit down but...." I wondered if I should I offer him my place on the couch, or would that make things even weirder?

"It's OK. I'm used to standing."

Betty finally stated the obvious, "You're out of jail."

He nodded. "Thanks to your folks." He half-smiled.

"Just like that?" I said skeptically. "What about you obstructing justice with your false confession?"

He chuckled. "You're such an idealist, Jughead."

It was the second time in a few hours that my cynicism had been doubted, and this time I flinched.

"Have Mr. and Mrs. Blossom forgiven you?" Betty asked.

"No, but I haven't forgiven them."

"Did you do it for Polly, because she's your daughter?" she whispered.

He sighed and took a pack of cigarettes out of the back pocket of his jeans. Then he seemed to think better of it and put them away again. Not looking at us, he said, "Alice told me she told you kids about us."

"Yes, but we want to hear your side of things."

I gave Betty a look that said _Are you sure about that?_ It'd been embarrassing enough to hear her mom's version.

He half-smiled again. "Your mom was and is one of a kind. No disrespect to Jughead's mom, but I've never had a woman get her claws so deep in me, and then push me away when it got too real. Again and again. And I let her, because I liked it."

Even though he hadn't been explicit, I was embarrassed by his description of Betty's mom, like it was something more complicated than hormones.

Betty didn't step back but instead said, "Even when she was married? Not that I'm excusing her."

He looked like if he had lit up, he'd take a puff now and slowly let it out. Instead he just shrugged. "We knew it was wrong and that's why we did it. She showed up after five years and insulted my tie. You know, Jug, your grandpa's old paisley one?"

"I know," I muttered.

"I told her she was still hot, even though she was a stick in the mud."

Now Betty blushed and I patted her hand, although we both knew that was him trying not to be crude.

"Then she pulled me to her by my tie, like we'd seen in I don't know how many movies at the Twilight. I knew that was my cue to give her the kind of kiss Hal Cooper couldn't. Sorry, Betty."

She shook her head and gestured that he should go on, although she was still blushing.

"When she broke up with me, I didn't fight it, not like when we were in high school and I made a fool of myself crawling back to her. But when I found out, from Fred Andrews, that she was pregnant, I asked her if it was mine."

I wondered if Mr. Andrews knew about the affair, since his wife did, but I asked, "What would you have done if she said yes?"

Without hesitation, my dad answered, "Asked her to run away with me."

I stared at him and Betty whispered, "You would've?"

"Yeah, but luckily for you two, she lied to me. Or maybe she believed it then. She said last night she wasn't sure. The thing is, it's because she made the 'safe' choice, Hal over me, that I knew she wasn't the kind of woman I wanted to run off with."

"But she's thrown that all away, hasn't she? Doesn't Mr. Cooper know now?"

"Yeah, he knows." To my surprise, my dad chuckled. "I was sleeping in my cell, when Tom Keller said I had a visitor. It wasn't that late, maybe ten, but jail is kind of boring and sleep passes the time. Not that last night was boring of course."

I could've said the same, but I said, "Was it Mr. Cooper?" I figured that Betty's dad had the lead on her mom because she stayed to talk to us. Plus, it seemed like Sheriff Keller would've said "guests" if Mrs. Andrews had gotten herself and Mrs. Cooper there first.

"Yeah, which was a hell of a surprise to wake up to. At least Tom gave me a head's up before sending Hal back. I didn't think Hal knew that Polly might be my kid, or that I'd taken her across the border with her boyfriend, but I couldn't think why else he'd be there. Maybe he wanted to interview me for the paper, although Alice had already decided to paint me as a lunatic for confessing to Jason's murder when I didn't have to."

"Why did you?" I asked, wanting to know what Alice Cooper's two men had said to each other but eager to solve the most puzzling part of the mystery.

He sighed. "Blame Hermione Lodge."

"Veronica's mom?" Betty said. "What does she have to do with this?"

But I said, "Archie saw you two talking, last weekend. Here, I mean on the way to the snack bar."

"He did?" Betty said in surprise.

I realized I hadn't told her after Archie told me, maybe because it was connected to him rejecting her. "Um, yeah, you had your back to them."

"Oh."

"Yeah, she told me something that night, but let me back up. I realized that Jason and Polly didn't have a real plan. They had the courage to run away together but not the brains to figure out what would come next."

Betty tensed next to me, and I wondered if I should defend our sister from my father's criticism, but he wasn't wrong.

"So when I heard that they wanted to go to Canada, I directed them to some friends of mine who were, let's say, used to my taking things across the border."

I wondered what sort of contraband he was talking about but decided it wasn't the time to ask.

"I left the kids at my friends' farm and then had to figure out where to ditch the car."

"But why couldn't you just return it to Mrs. Blossom?" This had been nagging at me for a week.

"Because Rosie expected the kids to drive off into the sunset. They and the Impala weren't supposed to come back."

"Oh, right."

"Can you tell us about your friendship with Nana Blossom?" Betty asked.

He half-smiled again. "You mean your sister's grandmother-in-law? And your granddad's first-cousin-in-law."

"Did you know Hal Cooper thought Jason and Polly were third cousins?"

"Of course. That's what Rosie thinks, too."

"And she's OK with that?" I asked, not that I'd found it that upsetting myself.

He shrugged. "I think that made her like Polly more, although she was also rooting for them because she thought it was romantic that Jason didn't go for the rich girl his dad picked out for him."

"Is that what you were talking to Veronica's mom about?" Betty asked.

"No, but I'll get to that. About Rosie and me, she's got a soft spot for me because she dated my dad until her parents broke it up because they didn't like her seeing a poor boy."

"You're kidding!" I exclaimed, thinking of how I'd kidded Cheryl about that possibility.

He chuckled. "Well, this is a small town. And even when I decided to ditch the car in the big city, I asked for help from a woman I had gone to high school with."

"Hermione Lodge," I said.

He nodded. "I knew she didn't agree with her husband's matchmaking and she would be happy that her intended son-in-law had run off with another girl. And she was rich enough to be able to hide the Impala for awhile."

"So how did it end up near the karaoke bar?" I asked.

"Well, that's what she was telling me when Archie saw us. I knew she'd moved back to town, bringing her daughter along, after her husband went to jail. She told me she couldn't look after the Impala anymore. I offered to go get it, but she said her butler, Smithers, was taking care of it."

"Wait a minute," I said. "What about Jason's jacket?"

"And Polly's postcard," Betty added.

"Hermione said it was time to muddy the waters more than the Sweetwater River drowning story had. She'd found a postcard in the Impala that seemed to be from Polly to Betty. She mailed it off right before she moved back here."

That explained the New York City postmark. "And the jacket?"

"I found it when I stopped for gas on the way to the City. I wasn't sure if I should send it to Jason or just hold on to it for the time being. Then I ended up leaving it in the car."

"And you got your fingerprints on it and the car. But what about Smithers's prints?"

"He wears gloves when he drives," Betty said.

"Oh." I looked at my dad again. "So Hermione Lodge framed you, and you made it worse?"

"I was being a good father."

I couldn't tell if he was kidding and I didn't know what to say.

Betty asked, "Did you expect Polly to speak up if you confessed to murder rather than just grand theft auto and maybe kidnapping?"

He shrugged. "I didn't know what might happen, but I knew Jughead was on the case even before the Impala turned up. And with you by his side, he could do anything."

Now I blushed, both at him linking me and her like that, and at his overestimation of our sleuthing abilities.

"So are you off the hook or just out on bail?" she asked.

"Well, sort of both. First your dad showed up and asked if it was true what Polly said in some video. So then he had to show me on his phone. He asked me why I would help two teens elope, and I wasn't sure how to answer that. Then Tom said your mom was there and wanted to speak to your dad. Hal asked if it could wait and Tom said he didn't think so. So your dad said he'd be right back, but I haven't seen him since."

"And my mom?" Betty whispered.

"We talked. And she asked Tom to find Polly but not bring her home."

"But what about the Blossoms?" I asked. "You took their kid, too."

He shrugged. "Well, they drove him away before I drove off with him. Anyway, unless you two have more questions...."

I had hundreds, although now some were for other parents: Mr. and Mrs. Blossom, Mr. and Mrs. Cooper, Mr. and Mrs. Andrews, and definitely Mrs. Lodge.

It was Betty who asked, "How did you find us?"

"Where else would you be?" His tone was baffled, rather than knowing or amused.

"I do want to talk to you but...." I glanced at Betty.

"You need to walk your date home." Now he was teasing.

I blushed a little, especially since Betty was smiling at me. I looked at my dad again and said, "Maybe we can go get breakfast together, me and you."

"Pop's with your pop?" he said as if I was five. "Yeah, OK. I'm going out for a smoke." And he left us alone again.

Betty pressed her forehead against mine and whispered, "Are you ready to face my mom again?"

"Well, maybe I won't walk you right to your doorstep."

She laughed and then we shared our last kiss of the morning. We talked and held hands on the way to her block, ignoring Reggie's remarks.

THE END


End file.
